Warlock's Apocolypse
by RhosFurey
Summary: Set after 'Playing with fire.' When a high profiled mage gets beheaded, Skulduggery and Valkyrie must find out who did and why. But they have to go over lots of obstacles, and Skulduggery has competition. This is a big epic, hope you enjoy it.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

No hall of statues after all.

Valkyrie prepared herself as a massive Ogre marched towards her. Valkyrie stared intently and concentrated hard, and then flexed her hand. She raised it up just in time before the disgusting Ogre ran into her. A gust of wind escaped from her hand and surprisingly the attempt sent the Ogre flying backwards crying out in bewilderment. The Ogre came smashing into a brick wall and the bricks tumbled down on the lump of the monster on the floor. Valkyrie looked around her, trying to find Skulduggery. When she could not see him anywhere, she saw the Ogre rise up from the rubble and shriek in anger.

Now Valkyrie had actually harmed the Ogre, the Ogre was very mad, and in his temper pulled out a tall lamppost out of the ground, and swung it towards Valkyrie. Valkyrie dived out of the way, and rolled across the ground, as the post just flew above her, missing her be inches, and crashing into a corner shop window.

Suddenly, before Valkyrie could get up and defend herself, the shop's burglar alarmed started to ring endlessly and the high pitch of it clearly irritated the

drooling Ogre. He cried out loudly and grunted, placing his fat hands over his small ears placed on the top of his head. Valkyrie took this opportunity and sent a fireball towards him. The Ogre didn't see it coming and it hit him squarely in the face. He was knocked backwards and cried even more loudly that Valkyrie was sure that the monster would wake up the whole city of Dublin, and was thrown back, but this time he didn't bother to rise up. With the alarm still ringing he grunted in frustration and, to Valkyrie's amusement, the Ogre was so tired and lazy that she heard snoring sounds coming from the heap laying on the tarmac. Before she knew it, Skulduggery was running back to Valkyrie holding ropes.

"So glad you finally made it." Valkyrie said sarcastically. "Where were you?"

Skulduggery went towards the Ogre cautiously, and when seeing the creature was content sleeping, he shrugged and tried to wrap the ropes around the body. Valkyrie went to help him push over the heavy Ogre onto it's belly.

"I was caught up with something, besides I thought you could handle a little thing like an escaped Ogre."

Valkyrie arched an eyebrow.

"Gee, thanks for the support." However, her attempt to sound annoyed was unsuccessful, and she smiled to the skeleton detective.

When they finally wrapped the rope around the snoring creature for at least ten times and made sure he wouldn't get out of the knots, Skulduggery got his mobile phone out and rang the Sanctuary. Two Cleavers came with a long lorry, which was the only vehicle that could hold the Ogre that wouldn't attract attention. After the Cleavers rode back to the Sanctuary with the 'sleeping beauty' behind them, Skulduggery and Valkyrie climbed into the Bentley.

"What was the thing you got caught up with?" Valkyrie asked Skulduggery while he started the engine.

Skulduggery only managed to hear her as he went out of his train of thought.

"What? Oh, I bumped into an old friend actually and he gave me some news." He turned towards Valkyrie, not looking at the road.

Even though Skulduggery hadn't any lips, Valkyrie knew that he was smiling. She copied him, managing to catch his happy mood like a virus.

"Ghastly's awake!"

"What!" Valkyrie screamed, elated by the information. Skulduggery nodded and turned back to the road.

"Although sadly, now he's back, it seems the Sanctuary won't do a hall of statues after all."

Valkyrie stared at him, unbelievably.

"So, how long has it been? One year?"

"Yep. Well, one year and seven months exactly. He's so confused, bless him. It only seems like a blink of an eye to him. Poor guy woke up in the hall not knowing where he was. Good to have him back."

"Yes, it is." Valkyrie agreed. She looked out of the window.

She couldn't believe it was actually one and a half years since she had met Skulduggery Pleasant, discovered this new, fantastic world full of magic with Ancients, Sorcerers, Faceless Ones, Hallow Men and even Vampires. However, not all of these scared her; she wasn't even fazed much when she met the talking, crime-busting skeleton. The night, exactly one and a half year ago, was when Serpine had wanted to kill her and had sent a White Cleaver he had made himself, but sadly, when Ghastly Bespoke saved her life, he had risked his and turned himself into stone without knowing how long he would stay like that. She turned back to Skulduggery.

"Can we go see him?"

"Ghastly? Well, maybe after he's recovered."

Valkyrie frowned, "Recovered? Is he hurt?"

Skulduggery laughed, "No, not like that. Well, you see, after staying still for two years, his body is trying to remember how it used to move. In other words, he's a little stiff at the moment."

Valkyrie didn't know if he was joking or not. Therefore, she just stared.

"Okay…"

Skulduggery laughed.

The Bentley stopped at a lay-by near Valkyrie's house. She stepped out and tried to disguise her shuffle yawn from Skulduggery but he had seen. Without a brow, he frowned.

"I need to stop sending you out too late."

"Who are you? My dad?"

Skulduggery sat back in his seat, raising his gloved hands defensively.

"I'm just saying, you should stay home more often, school even."

Valkyrie didn't know what to say, she was offended.

"You know how I feel about school; I much go chasing Ogre's with you anytime."

"It's a cruel world, Valkyrie. And plus, your GCSE's are coming up."

Valkyrie crossed her arms stubbornly, "I got my Reflection to do that. Trust me, I am learning."

Skulduggery sighed.

"Well, I do want my best assistant to stay with me, and I don't practically think GCSE's really do anything. So, you win."

"I always do, Skul. You should know that by now."

"Anyway, you don't really need to learn anything, I already got the brains."

"And I got the looks." Valkyrie finished, smiling.

"When I had hair and skin, I was quite a looker. Actually," he examined himself in the rear mirror. "I'm still am."

Valkyrie shook her head amused and pointed out, "You're wearing a different skull."

Skulduggery shrugged.

"A handsome skull at that."

She waved Skulduggery off, but not before they had planned to meet tomorrow. Luckily it was Saturday the next day, so Valkyrie didn't need to send her Reflection out. It was good not to be able to pretend and hide things from her parents. As usual she went into the garden and sent herself into the air with her powers. She found the Reflection sitting as normal on her bed, as soon as she saw Valkyrie climb inside; she stood up and asked, "Have you had a good day?"

Valkyrie nodded and thanked her. She was still guilty that the Reflection had been shot and was sensitive if the Reflection was harmed in any way. She always acted kindly to it, but it was still strange, talking to a double of her. The Reflection told her of her normal day and Valkyrie touched the Reflection's arm. The day's memories came flooding into her mind. School, the lessons, what she ate, what she talked about and what her parents did. Valkyrie nodded and the Reflection climbed into the frame of the mirror in her wardrobe and remained as a real reflection should do. Valkyrie dressed into her pyjama's and went into bed. Within seconds, she was fast asleep.

The next day, Valkyrie manage to avoid her parent's quizzical questions and went down to the harbour. Valkyrie wore her black clothes that Ghastly Bespoke had tailored for her one and a half years ago, and by that time she had grown at least another size bigger. She was thankful that Ghastly had finally awoken; finally perhaps she could get a new uniform. Moreover, she really wanted to thank him of what he had done to save her life. Valkyrie wandered if Tanith Low had heard the news yet. Valkyrie hadn't seen Tanith since their last big situation in the golf club, with the rampaging vampires and the stupidly enormous spider. Tanith worked for the Sanctuary in London, so Valkyrie rarely saw her.

Awhile later Skulduggery's Bentley pulled over and Valkyrie saw that he was wearing his usual disguise of a ginger wig and sunglasses.

"So, what are we doing today?"

Skulduggery pulled out and drove away from the harbour, "We're going to find out who Sanguine was working for."

"Right, well, where do we start?"

"We're going to see China, see if she has heard anything, then later maybe we could go and see Ghastly."

Skulduggery smirked sideways to Valkyrie as she sat bolt right in the seat.

"Really?" She asked happily.

She watched him nod to her, "Yes, we going to meet him in the Sanctuary. They are looking after him; see if being a statue changed him in anyway. And when they're happy with him, he's going back to his home. And," He continued, looking across Valkyrie's clothes, "I'm sure he would be too happy to try and make some better fitted clothes for you." And laughed.

Valkyrie hit him in his bony arm after laughing at her, and scowled. Then they both found themselves in the rundown building where Chine's Sorrows library was.

As soon as Skulduggery tapped on the door of China's apartment, she opened it straight away as if she was expecting them. Skulduggery's hand was still in the air when she had greeted them.

As usual China radiated her beauty so everyone fell in love with her. Her black hair was long and she had the most bluest eyes Valkyrie had ever seen. Today she wore pearls around her neck and a white woman's suit.

"Please sit down." She greeted them both. Valkyrie thought that China was a little more nicer today, but she couldn't think a reason why. She eyed China suspiciously, but sat down on China's leather sofa, while Skulduggery remained standing.

"China, I was hoping you received more information who Sanguine was really working for?"

China shook her head sadly, "I'm afraid whoever we are dealing with, they are certainly professional. I've sent loads of my men to go and find anything unusual, but every time we pick something up, it suddenly disappears. They're very clever, I tell you that."

"Have you been looking at other Sorcerer groups, see if they are planning on ruling the world?" Valkyrie asked.

Both Skulduggery and China looked at Valkyrie with dismay, Valkyrie suddenly felt very exposed with the two staring at her. Then thankfully Skulduggery answered her question.

"We have been looking through other magic organizations, but it seems they don't know anything about the recent events with Vengeous and the armour of Lord Vile. And they certainly don't seem to know an eyeless cowboy by the name of Billy-Ray Sanguine, and why he was hired to pretend he was hired by Vengeous, who he was actually hired to spy on by a mysterious organization, and what he's being paid to do that he was hired for."

Skulduggery stopped and took a deep breath and thought about what he had said and tried to make sense of it. Valkyrie and China stared at him dumbly.

"Well, I tried to make that simple but it seems that I'm just not a simple guy." he smiled at himself, "That's probably why I am a detective."

"Anyway," China began getting back to the subject, facing towards Valkyrie on her seat, "I'm not sure if these people are planning to rule the world, but if they pulled the wool over Vengeous eyes, they seem to be very clever and much more dangerous than him. And that is not good news."

Valkyrie thought for a moment. If only she could find Sanguine, if only he kept the promise that he would meet her again, where, he said, to kill her. If only she could somehow question him, interrogate him. But Valkyrie guessed that was impossible. He is an earthworm man. He would disappear in the ground beneath, creating a tunnel and going wherever he needed to be just from going underground.

While Valkyrie was thinking this, the other two also were lost in there own thoughts. Then suddenly a knock on the door, gave their attention. Skulduggery got his chin out of his hand and faced the door with curiosity and China stood up and opened the door.

A big burly man stood on the threshold, taking up the whole space of the doorway. His head was completely bald and had sparkling blue eyes, identical to China's eyes. It was Mr Bliss, China Sorrows brother. He didn't have time for China's welcome and barged past her. Valkyrie stood up at his eagerness and Skulduggery stood straight from kneeling on the wall.

"What's wrong?" Valkyrie asked, seeing that something clearly was.

Mr Bliss turned to Skulduggery, and Valkyrie moved to the detective's side.

"I've got bad news." he waited when China sat herself down safely, so that she would be prepared for the news. "Last night Jerome Riddle was murdered in his home. He was viscously beheaded."

Mr Bliss paused to let the news sink in, China gasped, but Skulduggery stood unmoving, deep in thought. Valkyrie wasn't effected at all; she didn't know who this Jerome Riddle was. So she scanned her eyes between Bliss, China and Skulduggery and tried to read their expressions.

"So, what does this mean?" China asked, but she already knew the question.

"It means we may know who is behind the mass murders of the Sanctuary Elders." Skulduggery answered.

Mr Bliss nodded. "Jerome was a peacemaker between the Warlocks and the Sorcerers. It seems the Warlocks are looking for a war."

Valkyrie frowned; she was beginning to get lost of this conversation. First of all, who was Jerome Riddle? Who are the Warlocks? And why do they have a grudge against the Sorcerers?

Skulduggery turned his head to Valkyrie, and reading her thoughts somehow, answering her question that were boiling her brain in confusion.

"Jerome Riddle was like a Bono in your world, in our world. He campaigned for peace since the war with the Faceless Ones. He kept the peace between the jealous Warlocks who didn't have the same rights as the Sorcerers, and convinced them not to protest and created a treaty. But once they had broken the treaty and that night they created a riot and a fight broke out between the stunned Sorcerers and the angry Warlocks. It broke out all over the world, and millions were killed, Sorcerers and Warlocks. They demanded Councils for their own, so they won't be ruled by the Sorcerers, they wished for communities, and they wished for power. But there was one problem."

"And what was the problem? Why were the Warlocks discriminated by the Sorcerers?"

"The Warlocks are evil. They are Necromancers." Mr Bliss told her with venom in his voice before Skulduggery could say anything else. "They deserve to be kept away from us and the public. They are dangerous, more so than the vampires. But they don't see it; they think they're innocent to their thousands of crimes they have committed. They are probably the worse kind of people that live on this Earth. They aren't just people who decide to become evil, they're born with it. Every single one has a dark soul. Ha!" Mr Bliss boomed out which made the four of them jump. "And they want to be equal with us."

Valkyrie was taken aback at Mr Bliss's comments, how strongly he felt about the Warlocks, that Valkyrie had never heard about before.

She looked across to China and Mr Bliss; the two seemed to be looking at each other, thinking the same thing, having a secret conversation together in their heads. Skulduggery sighed, tugged Valkyrie's arm, and led her to China's bathroom on the other side of the vast room.

As soon as the door was closed Skulduggery turned to Valkyrie, "You're confused. Yes?"

She nodded, wanting him to continue, to explain Mr Bliss's outburst.

"There's a little vendetta between China, Bliss and the Warlocks. There is certainly no love lost between them. They are very unfriendly to them."

"Why is that?"

Skulduggery paused awhile before he answered, "This is very personal, but I think you're trusted enough to know, so I tell you. Their father was Warlock. The family supported the Dark Lords. They hated them."

. "Gosh, I always imagined them being from a Sorcerer's family."

"Well, they don't like to shout it to the world. They're ashamed by it. They killed so many innocent people. That was why Bliss stopped worshipping the Faceless Ones." Skulduggery put his hands in his pockets. "That's what Warlocks do, they are merciless."

"Are we going to interrogate one? A Warlock?" Valkyrie wandered, seeing this was a clue of who the secret organization was.

Skulduggery shrugged, "It's quite hard going to find a Warlock to talk to. Well, it's hard to try and get a Warlock talking to us."

"Do you think we should investigate further?"

"It's worth checking what happened to Jerome Riddle, and actually find proof that the Warlocks had something to do with it."

There was a knock on the bathroom door, and Skulduggery opened it. Bliss was standing behind it, and Valkyrie and Skulduggery found China still on the sofa, looking distressed. Skulduggery tipped his hat at the brother and sister.

"Valkyrie and I are going to look into this further. So, we will leave you. I promised I'll tell you any news I get. Thank you China for your help."

They both left the room and walked down the library, where Valkyrie saw people burying their heads in rare, magical books, which Valkyrie hoped one day that she would read too. They found themselves in the bright light of a sunny morning and climbed into the Bentley.

"So, are we able to visit Ghastly then?" She asked hopefully.

Skulduggery seemed to smile, "Not even Warlocks could drag me away!"

They arrived in the shut down Wax Museum, and as usual they walked down the abandoned corridors until they stopped facing the wall, where, on the other side was the Sanctuary. They both placed their palm against it and pushed, and the wall moved backwards, letting them enter. They came through a large hallway and the Grand Mage, Thurid Guild stood sourly, gazing at Skulduggery with such contempt.

"Ah, Grand Mage, always good to see your happy little mug these days. Such a beautiful morning, don't you think?"

Guild crossed his arms, "If I had my way, you would have been sacked months ago."

Valkyrie defended Skulduggery. "Well, luckily for us, the other Sanctuary's think that Skulduggery should stay employed. So until you have found two other Elders, you're opinion should be assessed before you order such things."

He eyed Valkyrie up and down, "How should you know? You just a little girl."

Valkyrie opened her mouth to answer back, but Skulduggery raised his hand in silence.

"Please, Guild. We are not here to argue. We are here to visit a very missed friend. Surely you would understand."

Guild thought for a moment and nodded almost reluctantly.

He stepped back to let them past and gestured to the room where Ghastly Bespoke was being looked after.

"Wow, he bares a grudge." Valkyrie said, once they walked away from Guild. Skulduggery nodded. "You shouldn't bait him; he'll just become even more unbearable."

"Me? Bait him?" Skulduggery asked innocently, "Now, now Valkyrie, he's the one baiting. He's trying to get me to crack, to quit my job. But I'm going to crack him; I'm going to find out whose side he really is on."

"Think he's with the Warlocks?"

"I'm not sure yet. Once we talk to a Warlock, we'll know for sure."

Valkyrie raised her eyebrows, "Do you actually think we have a chance getting a Warlock talking to us?"

"Valkyrie, of course. What person can't fall for my charisma and cleverness? I'll get one for sure."

"Well, if you think so."

Skulduggery laughed and when they finally found the door to Ghastly's chamber. Before entering Skulduggery tapped on the door.

"Hello?" Valkyrie heard Ghastly's rough voice from behind the door.

"Room service." Skulduggery lied, changing his Irish accent to a posh, English one. Valkyrie stared at him, wandering what he was doing. He placed a finger over his teeth, where his lips would have been.

"Room service? Pah! That's a first." Ghastly replied surprised. "C'mon in."

Skulduggery turned the doorknob and opened it, and he and Valkyrie burst into the room.

Ghastly nearly flew out of his bed in surprise. To Valkyrie's amusement he completely fill the double bed and his legs and arms were sling to a hanging wire that hung from the ceiling, holding his arms and legs in the air straight. He wore his clothes that Valkyrie had last saw him in. It had taken him a few moments to realise it was Skulduggery Pleasant and Valkyrie Cain that had barged into the room.

His eyes moved across Valkyrie and Skulduggery and a smile spread across his scarred face.

Skulduggery looked at Ghastly and thought how awkward he looked. "How hilarious do you look?"

Ghastly grunted, "You would look like this if you had been a statue for…I forgotten how long. What year is it?"

Valkyrie smiled warmly to him, "2008,"

"Missed much?"

"Well, Serpine died, but then Baron Vengeous returned and wanted the armour of Vile. Then he raised the Grotesquery to life, found the support of an army of the infected, and of Dusk, then hired an assassin by the name of Sanguine, who was actually working for someone else, and then we found The Torment, who is actually a Spiderman. But then with the help of Valkyrie, Tanith Low, China and Mr Bliss, we conquered them heroically and now we are here."

"Wow, quite a lot."

They all laughed.

"I knew I see you sooner of later. How are you?"

"Good my friend, good. You?" Skulduggery suppressed a laugh when he looked at Ghastly's legs and arms being hung in the air.

"Just hanging."

Valkyrie managed to smile at the bad joke, and stepped forward.

"Mr Bespoke-"She began.

"Please, call me Ghastly." he insisted.

She nodded.

"I wanted to thank you, for what you did."

"Think nothing of it, besides I was really trying save my own skin."

"But I feel really responsible."

Ghastly laughed, "Don't be. Anyway, I much rather keep out of the trouble with Vengeous and just carry on with my tailoring."

He paused and started at Valkyrie's clothes.

"It looks like I'm going to make another outfit for you. I can't wait to get started."

He looked at Valkyrie up and down, measuring her with his professional eyes.

"How long are you staying like that then?" asked Skulduggery, tilting his head to the side like he usually did.

"As soon as I feel my arms and legs. What about you? Investigating anything?"

Skulduggery jumped up excitedly and moved across to the head of the bed.

"Yes, do you remember when I said that Sanguine was working for someone else, not Vengeous?"

"Err, vaguely." he lied.

"He is this cowboy who can bury down through the ground and creates tunnels. Oh, and he has no eyeballs." Valkyrie told.

"Sounds interesting. So, you're trying to find out who he was working for?"

"Bingo, but we have a bit of a clue. Jerome Riddle had been murdered last night, and we think Warlocks were involved."

Ghastly thought for a moment, letting the new information sink in.

"Warlocks," He nodded, "A possibility."

Valkyrie asked a question she had been dying to say for a while, but somehow, she dreaded the answer.

"What will happen if the Warlocks brake the treaty again, after Jerome gone?"

"Then all of the Sorcerers will be killed and the Warlocks will ruin the whole human race." Ghastly said darkly.

"Oh," was all Valkyrie said, "Not good, then?"

Skulduggery shook his head gravely, "Nope. But we'll stop them."

"Just you and a whole vengeful scary army of Warlocks. Yes, I can see how you can beat them." Ghastly stated sarcastically.

"I'm wandering, Ghastly, if me and Valkyrie could go into your Library and try to find some more research about the Warlocks history?"

"Hum..."

"Or do we have to wait for another four days?"

Ghastly smirked, "You really know me well, Skul." He shrugged, "Why not? You can go in there for awhile, but don't remove anything."

"Of course." Skulduggery promised innocently.

Ghastly wanted to hold his hand out to Skulduggery for a hand shake, but unfortunately he couldn't reach it towards Skulduggery dew to his numbness. So, instead Skulduggery patted Ghastly on the shoulder.

"You know, I really didn't miss you. I really only thought I was gone for a minute." Ghastly admitted.

"I'm hurt, Ghastly." Skulduggery pressed his hand where his heart was theatrically. Then turned back to normal, realising he was acting like an idiot. "Good to see you, Ghastly."

"Sadly I can't say the same." Ghastly joked.

"What? Everyone loves seeing me. Count yourself lucky that I even visited."

Ghastly smiled on his stiff face, "You were always so vain."

"What do you think of the new Grand Mage?"

"A bit strict, but I have to say he seems dodgy."

"What made you say that?" Valkyrie said curiously. She and Skulduggery was glad that Ghastly didn't trust him either.

He shrugged "He just has that look about him. That he's not entirely trustworthy."

"He tried to sack me." Skulduggery told Ghastly.

"Did he, now? Well, that makes me like him a bit more, then." Ghastly smirked.

Skulduggery gave him a look.

"He would have if he had two other Elders by his side agreeing with him. London told him that either he gets two Elders as quickly as possible, his decisions must be reported to the London Sanctuary."

"He's hiding something. Do you reckon he's actually working for the Warlocks?"

"That's what I've been thinking." Skulduggery pulled up his coat sleeve and glanced at his wristwatch. "Well, we better be off, Ghastly. Me and Valkyrie have a job to do."

"So happy I have to stay here. When I'm back home, I am going to stay out of any trouble you have. I promised myself I will never get mixed up in any dodgy, scary, world saving things ever again!"

Skulduggery said sceptically, "Ah, you wont be able to restrain yourself, Ghast!"

Valkyrie stepped forward, and hugged Ghastly, who took it with extreme surprise. Ghastly couldn't return it without his arms. And just lay their uncomfortably. Valkyrie let go quite quickly, embarrassment all over her face. Hugging wasn't quite her. But she wanted to show Ghastly how much she appreciated what he had done.

"I was never one to do hugs. Sorry."

"It's fine. I don't much like hugging either. But thanks."

Valkyrie suddenly went bright red by Skulduggery's reaction, he was staring quite confused and hid a little smirk on his mouth.

"Well, well Val, I never knew you were so soft."

"Don't expect one any time soon, Skul." Valkyrie said to him cautiously.

Skulduggery pulled his wig, sunglasses and hat back on, and placed his gloved hands in his pockets. Skulduggery opened the door and they said farewell to Ghastly.

UP06 Detailed Expenses Claim Form12/06/2009Page 8 of 2Issue 2


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The Detective Convention.

"Valkyrie," Skulduggery Pleasant said slowly.

Valkyrie narrowed her eyes, "Yes?"

"I want you to stay home while I go to the crime scene at Riddle's house, where he got murdered."

"What?" Valkyrie moaned.

"I'm just looking out for you." Skulduggery defended himself. "It's difficult for a young girl like you to see such a dreadful sight of a dead body."

Valkyrie stared blankly at him, her eyebrow raised and her arms folded.

"For your information, I have already seen a dead person, and a alive dead person and a massive zombie and magic and men made of paper, and an overgrown spider. So if you excuse me, I like to go with you."

"Ok, ok, you don't have to tell me all the times I have put you at risk. Besides, I only wanted to have a bit of peace and quiet from you. I'm only human…well a skeleton to be more precise."

"So, I can come with you?"

Skulduggery turned to her from driving, "Of course. You said you always win. So you have."

"Brilliant, my first crime scene."

Skulduggery started tapping the wheel with his bony fingers.

"It's not pretty, Valkyrie. And it's certainly not a trip to the park. Maybe show a little more consideration that a man has been killed." Skulduggery said seriously.

Valkyrie felt a bit ashamed, and dropped her head. "I know. Sorry."

"It's Okay. You're only simple, I know."

Valkyrie punched his left arm. When she did, she thought that her own fingers were harmed more than Skulduggery's arm. His was so bony, if felt as if she punched a stone instead.

"Ouch!" She yelled.

Skulduggery roared with laughter.

"Now, you're not serious! Show a little consideration that you hurt a little girl."

"Now, now, Valkyrie." he wagged his gloved finger at her.

They drove through the city of Dublin and entered the countryside. They rode on narrow roads with fields either side of it. Tractors ahead of them slowed them down, and Valkyrie had to restrain Skulduggery from beeping the horn continuingly. When they emerged at a cross road, Skulduggery did the most unusual thing. He drove straight on and drove through a hedge that was between two roadways going apart from another. When Valkyrie was sure they were about to collide into the high bush, the car seemed to go through the hedge without any contact and on the other side of it was a road. Valkyrie let go of the glove department, after her previous scare, and looked around her. The road was more wider and there were cottages either side of her. It was different to the Sorcerer streets in the city, they were more rural, more humble and quiet. Like where a pair of old people will spend their pensions after retirement. This was where retired, old sorcerers lived. Away from the politics of the Sanctuary, away from the hustle and bustle of city life. Some elderly Sorcerers where out now, watering their garden plants, a majority using their hands for water instead of a watering can.

Valkyrie saw them stand up straight, staring at the unfamiliar Bentley driving slowly down the red brick road. Unconsciously, Valkyrie started singing in her head, 'Follow the red brick road. Follow the red brick road.'

Then, when realising that she was singing a song from 'The wizard of Oz', she brushed it out of her mind, embarrassed.

"Is this where Jerome lived?" She asked.

"Yes, but not with the neighbourhood. He was a quiet man. Kept his nose in his own business, and kept people out of his own. He was a strange, isolated man. An enigma."

"So, where did he live?"

Without saying anything, Skulduggery pointed up ahead.

Valkyrie followed his finger and saw a hill, and on top of that hill was a fortress. Valkyrie's mouth dropped open. It looked out of shape in the quiet, ideal countryside village. It was made out of stone and tall, walls surround the main building. Valkyrie had no doubt that he was very private. Skulduggery drove up the hill and then stopped when they came across a wide drive way with a tall iron bar gate that lead to the house or 'fortress' as Valkyrie preferred. It had spires towering above and had thick blocked grey outer walls with red banners hanging over the side of it. On the banners had the gold letters JR stitched in them. Skulduggery stopped the car just in front of the gate, and whined down his window. Built in the wall next to the gate was a metal speaker box. Skulduggery pushed the button above it and a booming voice escaped through a small speaker.

"Who's this?" The voice sounded a rude, Valkyrie thought. Skulduggery cleared his throat.

"This is Detective Skulduggery Pleasant and I have my assistant Valkyrie Cain. We are here to investigate the death of Major Jerome Riddle." he replied simply. The man on the other side of the speaker paused, as if he was thinking. Then he said,

"Oh, I 'eard a lot 'bout ya. Awight, better cum in 'en." Valkyrie recognised his cockney accent and wandered why a London Sorcerer was here. But she supposed the death of Major Riddle was very important and the whole Sorcering world would have been panicking. She wandered, while the buzz sounded and the gate opened up for the Bentley to drive through, that Tanith may be here. But she suddenly doubted it and remained looking through the glass. The car climbed up a wide path, with forest either side of it. It was certainly dark and the atmosphere was eerie. She never thought such a man of peace would live anywhere so sinister.

"Are you the only one investigating the death?" She turned her head towards the skeleton next to her.

He stared back, Valkyrie didn't know how she knew, but she sensed he was amused.

"First of all, he was murdered, and secondly, this is a world wide catastrophe and detectives everywhere wouldn't be kept away from this scene."

"So, you got competition then?" Valkyrie smiled.

"Valkyrie?" he stared at her as if she was the dumbest girl in the world. "I don't have competition, I am the best detective in the world."

"Even if you say so yourself?"

"Especially said so from myself. I am, of course, the smartest detective in the world also."

They both laughed and didn't stop until they entered the clearing in front of the estate-like house. The front yard was covered with fancy expensive cars that Valkyrie only saw in movies and on the television. They were the type that drove the Prime Minister or the President around the place. Black tinted windows, bullet-proof glass, super strong metal, tough tyres, and very, very stylish. Even Skulduggery's Bentley looked normal and runned down compared to these. Valkyrie and Skulduggery stared at the amount of detective cars out in the yard. Parked on the greenery, under tree's and even one car, most probably owned by a paranoid detective, was parked in the late Jerome's own garage. Skulduggery himself couldn't believe the amount of cars that were out here. He slowed down the speed of his car and skidded to a halt, his jaw dropping.

Valkyrie turned to him smugly.

"Seems an awful lot of detectives out here, Skul. You're sure you are better then all of these?"

"Please," He said, still looking at the cars with a mix of awe and horror. "I bet they haven't even seen a walking, talking and a handsome skeleton before. And look at me, I am a walking, talking, and extremely handsome looking skeleton."

Valkyrie shook her head.

"You can't be so optimistic forever, you know?"

Skulduggery moved the car and turned the wheel, looking for an extra space for his Bentley. "I can try." And this time, Valkyrie heard the first hint of doubt in his voice.

They both climbed out of the car and slowly walked towards the high, heavy looking oak door into the house. Skulduggery casually strolled with his hands in his pockets and let Valkyrie pull a lead that rang the sound of the bell for the door.

Within a millisecond an elderly man with white thick hair dressed in a penguin suit answered the door. When he saw who it was he rolled his eyes and mumbled to himself, "Not more flaming detectives."

Skulduggery chuckled at him and tilted his hat to him, letting Valkyrie enter first. When Skulduggery went through, he held out his hand to the manservant politely and introduced himself.

"Detective Skulduggery Pleasant, here to solve the murder of Major Riddle."

The servant didn't take his hand and instead eyed him with a look of disgust on his face and stared him up and down. "Yes, I know who you are…skeleton." he finished bitterly.

"Charming." Valkyrie called at him sarcastically.

The servant turned towards her, seeing her for the first time. His eyes opened wide, finding how young she was.

"Where is the world going to? A skeleton and a school girl trying to solve the death of my master." he cried in despair.

Skulduggery raised his finger, "We are standing here, you know? Listening to everything you say."

The rude servant gave Skulduggery a stare that could of killed him, then gave up and sighed and led them to the living room.

To Valkyrie it looked like a medieval museum. Armour suits stood in the corners and a wide stone fire place was the biggest thing in the room. Swords, axes and other vicious weapons hung on the walls. And Valkyrie pondered why a much loved, peacemaking Sorcerer would be so sinister? That same word entered her head again.

But the room was very big to place all of the detectives inside the room. Skulduggery stopped dead in his tracks as he looked about the other detective's faces. Valkyrie gasped.

Wow, I just entered a detective convention, she said inside her head.

She marvelled at how each detective and his assistant was different to the one next to the other. One pair wore traditional robes, another wearing a Sherlock Holmes style outfit. Valkyrie almost burst out laughing, staring at him. She traced her eyes again, and caught an eye of one, unpleasant looking man who wore a tuxedo. He reminded her more of a MI5 agent than a detective. And then there was a younger pair who wore hoodies and jeans, wanting to blend in with the public. She came across a woman detective, to Valkyrie's relief. She was very pretty with red short spiky hair, and wore leather, dark clothes. She was a punk, but was Valkyrie's far by yet, favourite detective. She saw Valkyrie looking and gave a polite smile towards her. She smiled back. Again, all the detectives varied in age, height, built, style but everyone of them had something in common, they were Sorcerers.

But they were all facing one man, they merely looked at Valkyrie and Skulduggery entering the room. They had their attention on a man that stood before the roaring fire in the fire place. He was short and plumb shaped. He wore a tweed suit that was very tight on him and he had a red face. He had a mousy, thin comb over and thick dark eyebrows. He moped his face from sweat with a red poker dot handkerchief and removed his round glasses, whipping them. After he placed his glasses back on the arch of his nose, he noticed the new comers.

"Ah, here you are! That's the lot?" He asked the servant in a high pitched shrill of a voice.

He nodded grudgingly and stalked out of the room, muttering curses under his breath.

Skulduggery came towards the stranger and shook his hand. Valkyrie remained behind.

"It's very good to see you once again, Mr Pleasant." The man was very excited meeting the detective and stared at him with awe.

Skulduggery was very overwhelmed and gratified at the man's enthusiasm. "It's good to see you again, Mr Envy."

Mr Envy continued to shake Skulduggery's gloved hand and Skulduggery had to cough to remind him. Envy seemed to finally notice and let go quickly. There were some muffled chuckles from the detectives at Mr Envy's behaviour. He smiled at Skulduggery adoringly and then only manage to notice Valkyrie behind Skulduggery's shoulder.

"And who is this?" he moved across to Valkyrie. All eyes were on her now, and she shuffled on her feet uncomfortably.

"I'm Valkyrie Cain, Skulduggery Pleasant's assistant." Mr Envy pulled his glasses low and stared over the frames, squinting at her with beady eyes.

"My, my. How old are you, Miss Cain?"

Valkyrie sighed. How long will this be an issue?

She disguise her annoyance by smiling at him. "I'm thirteen, but soon to be fourteen." she added quickly.

"I'm Rowan Envy, in charge of this case." He said quickly, wanting to ask something else instead. "Oh, so who are your parents? Do I know them?" He kindly asked, although he was much older, he was very short and Valkyrie had to talk down at him, which made fresh giggles in the room. "Any good blood lines?"

Valkyrie didn't know what to say. She was a Sorcerer, but her parents weren't. She thought for quite awhile. She had the Ancients blood in her veins but was she allowed to say? To her, being an Ancient descendant seemed very dangerous and she could be targeted. She already rose a god from the grave. What else could she do? She didn't know what to say. Fortunately, seeing Valkyrie's mind wandering, Skulduggery jumped in and helped her out.

"Er, Valkyrie is a niece of a late friend of mine, Gordon Edgley."

Mr Envy merely nodded, not familiar with the name Gordon Edgley. He turned his face back at Skulduggery with magnified blue eyes behind his round spectacles. He seemed to crane his neck up to Skulduggery because he was so short.

"Oh? Well, she looks like a very intelligent young lady."

Valkyrie expected Skulduggery to disagree. Especially after all the teases he gives her being dumb, but he didn't.

"Indeed. I think she is probably my best assistant yet."

Valkyrie didn't knew she could raise her eyebrows so high before. She stared at him incredulously. Envy shook her hand suddenly and shook it almost as enthusiastically as when he shook Skulduggery Pleasant's.

"It has been charming to meet you at last, Valkyrie. I should expect to see you more often."

Valkyrie's cheeks blushed, taken aback by the man's kindness. But she wished that the attention on her would subside quickly because she could feel loads of eyes boring into her.

Envy continued to shake her hand for some time, and an angry, obvious fake cough was sounded from the detective wearing the tuxedo Valkyrie had seen earlier.

"If you don't mind Rowan, but we have a mystery to solve here."

Valkyrie noticed he had a strong American accent. His assistant, who was by his side closely, wore a bowler hat. His New Yorker voice muttered to his partner. "You tell 'em, boss."

The detective smirked triumphant and smugly.

Valkyrie already made her decision that she didn't like that detective one bit. She hoped that she and Skul could beat the American, and find out who killed Major Riddle first.

Mr Envy scowled at the detective's snide comments. Turning his back on Valkyrie and Skulduggery he clapped his hands to the room full of Sanctuary employers.

"Right, have I got all of your attention?" His high pitch squeal rang around the room. The Sorcerers replied by mumbling for him to get on with it.

"Well, as I arranged, the body has been moved into the bed chamber which has been made into a morgue and professor Kenspeckle is with the body." Skulduggery and Valkyrie looked at each other. Valkyrie knew that Kenspeckle wasn't a fan of Skulduggery Pleasant. "We have also kept the crime scene untouched and everything there is in place."

He paused looking almost sadly at the crowd of detectives. But then shook his head as if to compose himself and continued. "As you may already know, this is very serious. Who knows what would happen if the Warlocks found out this information. They could use that for their advantage and brake the treaty knowing that what ever Jerome Riddle had promised about being equal will never happen. And sure, Major Riddle was a inspiring man of the Sorcering world and very powerful, which to his death, would be a punishment of death also.

"This is a very important case, more important than any other you ever have encountered. Do remember that we're all here to help each other, to solve this with each other. Not a competition. And, as they always say, two heads are better than one."

Valkyrie hated the phrase, as they always say. Who were they? Anyway she put that aside and concentrated on what happened next.

It seemed the entire room started protesting, oblivious that they had to cooperate with other detectives around the world. These professionals didn't trust others, and certainly liked working by themselves. Valkyrie already knew that this would end very badly. Among the disagreements between the crowd, one detective hated the idea most of all.

"What! Are you serious?" the American cried in rage. He strode over Mr Envy with wild eyes. "Do you know who I am?"

His assistant followed behind him folding his arms across his wide chest. Envy started fumbling over his words as they came closer to him.

"Well, er…I don't, er…really know…who…you…are, detective." He played around on a loose button on his jacket, not wanting to face the angry American.

"What?" This time the American's voice was more gentle and quiet, seeming surprised that Envy didn't have a clue who he was. He stopped in his tracks and held out his arm quickly stopping his assistant also, that stuck to his side like glue. His partner bumped into it surprised and turned his head to his partner.

It was all quiet in the room as the detectives all stopped arguing and concentrated on the three men in the middle of the room. Then Envy's timid, small voice stopped the awkward silence.

"Erm, I wouldn't mind though, if you would like to introduce yourself, if you wish?"

It was quiet again, and the crowd was still and silent, seeing what would happen next. Suddenly, after Valkyrie grew bored on the tense atmosphere, the American detective gave out a shriek of hysterical laughter. The whole room jumped at his reaction.

"No matter. I assume everyone in this room is familiar with the name Hugo Spite." He turned expectantly to the group of detectives and their number two's.

Everyone, except Envy and Valkyrie all gasped and started figuring out who the person was. It seemed they all were familiar to the name Hugo Spite. To their reactions, Hugo could've been a movie star. They stared at him with awe and inspiration. And some even came up to him and shook his hand, and apologised to him for not realising the famous Hugo Spite. But one pair didn't move to him, but instead looked at him with complete loathing, and crossed their arms. Valkyrie saw that it was the red haired woman detective she had seen before. Her partner also frowned at the crowd gathering around Hugo.

After everyone was done greeting him and talking to him with wide eyes and stupid grins across their faces, Envy stood there trying to remember a 'Hugo Spite.'

Then Hugo laughed and stepped toward the little man and patted him on the back.

"It's Okay, ol' fella. I never usually show my face."

Envy continued to frown.

Valkyrie was too focused on Hugo's face that she hadn't noticed that Skulduggery approached Hugo. He held out his gloved hand to him. Hugo saw him and took it, not taking his eyes off Skulduggery's face.

"Ah, so you're the famous Detective Skulduggery Pleasant?" Hugo said with his clipped Northern American voice. He sounded friendly, but a hint of sarcasm remained in his tone.

Skulduggery nodded, and said also. "I hardly say famous, you're certainly are more famous then me, Hugo. It's good to finally meet you."

He parted hands, but kept talking.

"Yes. Well, I only show my face when a very important case occurs. This is certainly a big shock to our world."

Skulduggery grinned, "You think you can solve this case?"

"Who wouldn't say I couldn't?" He gave a smug but radiant smile. He soon had the majority of women assistant's swooning and charmed by him. Valkyrie however, thought that he was repulsive and cocky. She grimaced at him.

Skulduggery too, looked like he had made up his mind that he didn't think the detective was pleasant. This time, when he answered, his voice was less polite.

"You think you could solve this case alone?"

"Mr Envy explained that if we wanted to solve this case, we must stick together. Not go individually."

Valkyrie backed Skulduggery and he smiled at her, happy that she was thinking the same thing he was thinking.

Then a new voice sounded from behind her, "Exactly."

Valkyrie saw the woman detective walking through the gathered Sorcerers. She came to the front with Valkyrie, Skulduggery, Hugo and his silent assistant. Hugo noticed her and scowled at her looks. His eyes traced over her bright, red, spiky hair, her piercings and her baggy black clothes.

She totally ignored him and held her hand out for Skulduggery.

"I am Elsa Wild. I work with the Detectives Institute of the Sorcerers in France. I agree that we should work together. It's a pleasure to meet you at last." Valkyrie recognised her strong French accent.

Skulduggery took her hand that was covered in silver rings, gladly.

"The D.I.S.F? I've been there once. Very nice people, although I didn't know a word they said."

She smiled a toothy smile, then finally turned to Hugo. He still wore the look of disgrace on his face.

"So…Hugo Spite. Think you're too good for us do you?" She crossed her arms across her chest tightly.

"I am the highest paid and most successful detective here. But I wouldn't say better, maybe more fortunate."

This caused a stir in the detective assembly and whoever praised Hugo before, certainly changed their mind after his comment. Hugo's assistant looked darkly at them. Hugo cried in frustration and called to the detectives.

"I am very sorry that you heard that the wrong way. But I work better alone. Do you want to know who killed Major Riddle?"

Before the crowd turned into an angry mob, Envy's small voice piped up from behind Valkyrie.

"Can we settle an agreement? Seeing as we're acting like school children."

They all grudgingly nodded and became quiet, waiting for his proposal. Valkyrie heard Hugo sigh quietly in relief.

"How about Detective Spite work on his own without any disruption while we try to solve the mystery ourselves together without his help?"

They were silent for a moment, thinking about his suggestion.

"I thought this wasn't a competition?" Valkyrie said. This made it even more intense, a group of detectives trying to beat a more, supposedly better detective. This was simply asking for trouble.

But then Detective Wild stepped closer to Hugo. "Okay, lets do it. Maybe we'll make that head of yours fit through that door soon."

The room felt the tension between the smart American and the punky French woman. Skulduggery tried to get between them.

"If it is the only way to be able to stay civilised, then I suppose it could work." he told Envy. Then he said out to the assembly. "Put your hand up if you agree?"

Every hand went up, even Hugo's. Skulduggery nodded, satisfied and continued. "So, is it about time we worked together and solved the crime?"

There was a chorus of 'yes's' across the room. Skulduggery certainly held the crowd and was a good leader. Valkyrie realised why he was such a strong leader in the secret war and why they'd won it. She tried to observe his gesture, his voice. She hoped one day she could be a leader, a fighter, a much loved ambassador like Skulduggery.

When the chorus subsided, Envy stood in front of the bunch of them.

"Right, well I think the only way we could do this is go one at a time. Skulduggery, Valkyrie, Miss Wild and Theodore can come in first. " Then he spoke quietly to Skulduggery, "His body is upstairs. You sure you want to let Valkyrie see this?"

Skulduggery thought about it for a while and nodded, "She tougher than she looks."

And with that the four of them opened the door. To their surprise, the servant was kneeling at the door with his ear pressed against it. As soon as Skulduggery saw him tumble to the floor, he stood up and walked hurriedly.

"Which first, the body or the crime scene?"

Valkyrie stopped and answered, she knew where they first wanted to go.

"The body."

UP06 Detailed Expenses Claim Form12/06/2009Page 7 of 2Issue 2


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

**A headless body is not a pretty sight.**

The servant guided them to his deceased master's old chamber; he couldn't bear to look at the door. Valkyrie knew that he was still upset. He showed it to them impatiently and stalked off once again without saying a word.

Elsa Wild opened it.

Valkyrie didn't know what she was expecting, but she had forgotten that Jerome Riddle had been decapitated until she saw it. It was certainly not a sight for the faint hearted. Although the body was covered in a thin white sheet, she could clearly see the missing gap where the head ought of had been. By the lights, the sheet was nearly transparent and obvious to see what was underneath. Riddle's feet appeared out of the sheet and looked pale white with blue veins. Horribly the colour of the skin reminded her of the vampires and of the undead that stalk with them. It sent a shiver down her spine. However, the room was cold, Kenspeckle needed the body as cold as possible so it could be kept preserved to examine. She breathed out and saw mist going out of her mouth. She gripped herself at the shoulders.

Towards them, Kenspeckle was seen with his back towards them as he was beyond the table on the other side. He had not seemed to notice the arrival of the detectives and was engrossed with something on the lab desk instead.

Skulduggery said suddenly, "Good afternoon, Professor."

Kenspeckle Grouse jumped at the sudden voice and turned around. All the detectives cringed away with disgust as Kenspeckle held the head of Jerome Riddle in his gloved, right hand by the hair.

"Oh, no!" Valkyrie cried, turning away, holding her mouth to stop herself from gagging.

"Don't worry, don't worry!" Kenspeckle moaned, getting annoyed at their reaction as if he thought that a dead human head was no reason getting hysterical about.

Valkyrie turned back again, and saw that Kenspeckle had replaced the head into an icebox.

"Honestly, if you had knocked…"

"It's okay, Professor. We caught you off guard there."

Kenspeckle eyed Skulduggery Pleasant. Valkyrie wandered how he will act like with Skulduggery. Valkyrie liked Kenspeckle and he liked her, but there was no love lost between Skulduggery Pleasant and Professor Kenspeckle Grouse.

"Ah, I should of known it was you. No manners at all!" he pointed at Skulduggery accusingly.

"We're here to see the body." Wild said.

Kenspeckle saw Wild for the first time, "Ah, have I seen you before?" Kenspeckle squinted his eyes to Detective Elsa Wild.

"Perhaps." she replied. "I'm detective Elsa Wild, head of _D.I.S.F_." She held out her hand to Kenspeckle, but instead he looked at it apologetically and awkwardly as he showed his gloved hands.

"You don't want to know where these have been."

Then he stopped again, and made up his mind. "No, I have seen you somewhere else before, I'm sure."

Wild looked uncomfortably to everyone and shrugged. "I am sorry, professor, but I am afraid I, however, have not met you before until this moment."

"Oh," Kenspeckle said simply. "Perhaps it's my old age."

"You are not that old, professor." Wild told him kindly.

Kenspeckle was charmed by her, "Why, thank you Detective Wild. I'm going to like you." he glared at Skulduggery.

Skulduggery cut in impatiently.

"May we see the body, professor?"

The professor rolled his eyes, "Very well."

Skulduggery moved towards the table where the body was laid out upon and carefully lifted the sheet off the upper body and laid it just under the diaphragm.

Skulduggery went into his coat pocket and pulled out a pair of gloves, identical to Kenspeckle's to Valkyrie. "Put these on, we can't afford to lose any evidence."

She slipped them on and stood there like a lemon. What next?

Skulduggery was kneeling over the table, just inches away from the dead body's chest, Valkyrie shivered.

"How long have we got here?" Valkyrie asked.

"Only half an hour." Skulduggery replied tracing his fingers around Major Riddle's neck.

"Just that?" Valkyrie said.

Theodore took out a highly expensive, professorial photographer's camera and pointed at it to Wild. Valkyrie wandered why he never said anything.

Detective Wild smiled at him encouragingly, "Of course."

Theodore started snapping pictures of the severed head, which Kenspeckle exposed for the examination. Valkyrie tried to trace her eyes away, but it was hard to miss. She should have felt disgusted and bad, but it intrigued her and was interested in the forensic stuff she was learning today.

"Yes, so you better start taking pictures of your own." Skulduggery looked closely at the wound of the neck and stared through a magnifying glass. The sight made Valkyrie almost laugh until she realised there was a dead body at her side.

"We don't have a camera, do we?" Valkyrie realised.

Skulduggery jumped up and reached again into his inside jacket pocket. "Oh, yeah. Here it is."

Valkyrie almost out of respect burst into laughing at the sight of the disposable camera that usually was bought in a Pharmacy. She stared Skulduggery full in the face incredulously and raised her eyebrows. Skulduggery handed it to her.

"Back to work. Take pictures of the wound and anything that you think could be helpful in the investigation. Make sure you picture any marks, such as Birth marks and any tattoos."

She nodded and opened the package it was wrapped in. Skulduggery sure is a hoot, bringing in a camera and humiliating her with this cheap thing.

She ignored Theodore's smirk and wished that Skulduggery had a camera like Wild's.

Valkyrie got so used to the retched smell that swirled around the room that she stepped closer to the body. The wound was still gory and, to Valkyrie's opinion fake, as if he body was actually a model that was being used in the latest horror blockbuster in Hollywood. However, this was reality, and she had to do her job. Skulduggery stepped aside for her and strode over the Kenspeckle and Theodore with the head of Riddle.

Valkyrie decided that she would look later; right now, the body was bad enough for her. She looked at the body up and down and saw the pale white skin and again the veins. She held the camera up to her eye and took a picture of the flesh wound. It was still fresh but no blood was coming out of it. She saw the skin cut at the sides jaggedly and thought how much pain he would have felt, if he had felt it at all. The speed must've had been quick. Unconsciously, she placed her hand on to her own neck and grimaced. He was middle aged and had black, curly arm hairs. She saw his round belly underneath the thin sheet. His fingernails were blue. It was hard to tell what he looked like, because obviously he had no features. She turned up the other end of the sheet at the bottom end of the table to expose his legs. Like the top half, the skin was pale and the toe nails pale blue. More leg hairs and no apparent suspicious markings.

She placed back the sheet and sighed. The fact that she was looking at a dead body which was alive just hours before didn't sink in to her yet. She gulped down the lump in her throat and continued. She was about to give up and tell Skulduggery that nothing particular was there, until she upturned the body's right forearm and inside the forearm was a tattoo. Now this was strange, why would someone like this man have a tattoo? She looked at it closely. It was apparently a black thin circle with a crescent moon in the middle.

"Skul, I found something."

Skulduggery was alerted and stepped quickly to Valkyrie's side. She pointed at it, careful not to touch the ice-cold flesh and showed it to him.

"Ah," Skulduggery said after a few minutes.

Wild was quickly at their side too, frowning down at the discovery. Theodore just lingered behind her. Kenspeckle went to the other side a put his glasses on his nose and stared at it.

"Mm," Kenspeckle copied the tone of Skulduggery. They both looked at each other and said at the same time.

"Warlock's Trust Campaign." They chorused.

"Oh," Valkyrie muttered, a little disappointedly. Hoping it was something interesting and scandalous, but it wasn't.

"Yes, it is. " Wild agreed, "It's his mark for the Warlock's trust."

"How could Warlocks kill someone who wanted what was best for them? Campaigning his whole life for these people and they stabbed him in the back." Valkyrie wandered out load. Skulduggery nodded, agreeing.

"That's just what I was thinking, Valkyrie." he stood up from kneeling over the table. "Have you taken pictures of it?"

"Only one." She answered.

"Take quite a few, just in case. You never know if it could be some use to us."

Valkyrie nodded and continued to take pictures of the tattoo in different angles.

Skulduggery inspected the body himself whilst.

"Professor, who discovered the body?" Skulduggery asked Kenspeckle.

"His Manservant, sadly. Was very shocked."

Skulduggery looked sympathetic. "He deserves a good strong, hot cup of tea."

Valkyrie rolled her eyes. That was Skulduggery's answer to everything.

"Where was he found?" Skulduggery quizzed Kenspeckle once more.

"In his office, I think. It's been closed up for awhile. Special forensic have taken over the place. I expect you would be there in awhile, then?"

Skulduggery nodded, lifting up the whole sheet and peaking, until he saw something and quickly placed the sheet back down to cover the body's 'parts'.

He coughed uncomfortably and continued. "Yes," He turned to Kenspeckle. "You found anything in the post mortem?"

"Not a thing. I tried rainbow powder and all sorts. Seems he died from a sweep to the neck. Quite quick I say."

Skulduggery nodded.

Then he looked behind himself to find Valkyrie eyeing the icebox, hoping to take pictures of the head. Skulduggery looked back at Kenspeckle expectantly for him to show the head to her.

"Oh, I'll do it then." he snapped at Skulduggery.

Skulduggery watched the professor storm around the table and went to assist Valkyrie, helping her to photograph the damage.

The skeleton detective wasn't sure about the tattoo. He had heard about it before, and the symbol of the moon, clearly indicated the Warlocks, and the circle indicating the circle of life, time and continuity. He was just about to stare closer at it, when Elsa Wild tapped him on the shoulder.

"May I?"

"Of course, Madam." Skulduggery obligated. Wild smiled at him amused and charmed.

He stepped aside for her and glanced at his watch.


	4. Chapter 4

_Thank you to those of you who have be VERY patient in my VERY long chapters! I've tried to half each of them so you don't get bored. I am so thrilled and so chuffed at all of the reviews and you're opinions! Please keep it up, as I promise you that there are more great chapters ahead. If you like Sanguine, he soon returns with avengance and plenty more..._

_Thanks once again, please be patient with the chapters once again, I've been so used at just writing none stop and i don't know where to stop!_

_Please continue to R&R! ;)_

_Rhos Furey _

_**Chapter Four**_

_**The 'Wrong' Time and Moment **_

Valkyrie saw the head closely as Kenspeckle carefully placed it on a slab on the desk from the metal box containing liquid nitration. It was completely different experience to actually see the man's face. His eyelids were closed and blue. His hair was light brown but slightly balding at the top. His eyes were slightly lined and around his mouth. His skin was deathly pale and slightly blue tinged like his body. Again, the wound was dried with dark, crimson red. His face was round with chubby cheeks. They would've blushed red, but now all they showed was blue veins. Valkyrie took a deep breath and snapped pictures of it. When she was done, Kenspeckle was turning the head for her and telling which spots to focus on, Kenspeckle replaced it once more back into the icebox, then turned to Valkyrie.

"It's been a while Valkyrie." he smiled kindly at her. She smiled back, then she remembered.

"Is your laboratory okay?" The last time she saw Professor Kenspeckle, she had been chased by the Grotesquery and it had killed his two assistants and wrecked his laboratory behind the old cinema.

"Yes, quite. The Grand Mage has actually very kindly donated some money to fix it. I actually received a new computer. Highly complex."

Valkyrie smiled delightfully. "I'm sorry about that."

Kenspeckle frowned down at her, "It wasn't you," he reassured her, "It was Skulduggery Pleasant. Why has he got someone young like you, getting chased by something so vicious like that."

Valkyrie rolled her eyes secretly to herself. Here we go, she thought.

"Professor, honestly, don't blame Skulduggery. I can look after myself. Anyway, I'm still here."

"Yes," he looked at her sadly, "But for how much longer?"

"Professor-" Valkyrie tried to tell him, but he quickly cut across her.

"Valkyrie, I think it's about time that you step aside and let Skulduggery take this investigation _alone. _Valkyrie, I know how strong and brave you are. But this is something that is above you. This is probably the beginning of the end. I'm not sure if you can take much more once you realise how terrible this is."

Valkyrie stared at him, hurt. She could take this. She was meant to be here. And she knew how important this was. She wasn't some child who didn't know how serious this was. She frowned at him, "Don't worry, professor. I will stop this. This is my destiny."

She hadn't intended of saying 'destiny' but once she had said it, she realised that it was. She was a descendant of the Ancients. The Sorcerers who stopped the Faceless Ones, and now, she was the one who will defeat the Faceless Ones and any bad thing that threatened the lives of Sorcerers and the innocent humans. She and Skulduggery Pleasant, the best sorcerer ever in Valkyrie's opinion, together will save the world.

Kenspeckle looked at her, not just her face, but his eyes seem to go beyond that, through her, into her soul. She felt uneasy at his tense stare and shifted her feet. He stopped, and nodded.

"I can see that you are. You are different."

He squinted and nodded again, "I would say special…fascinating."

With Valkyrie's relief, Skulduggery came up to them both and saved Valkyrie responding to Kenspeckle strange remarks. "Right, have you taken enough pictures?"

She nodded, and smiled to Kenspeckle and said goodbye.

"Right," Wild said, putting off her gloves, that were stained red with blood at the finger tips. She had been inspecting the wound, Valkyrie gathered. "Seems to have been a sword that had killed him."

Skulduggery nodded, his jaw in his hand, thinking deeply. "But by the way the wound is jagged at the front, the sword hit from the back and got stuck just before the front of the neck and had taken-"

"-two blows to the neck." Wild finished.

Valkyrie grimaced. He would have been in pain if the weapon had been stuck and had to been cut right off by another swipe of the sword.

Skulduggery asked Kenspeckle, "Was there a sword found with the body?"

The professor shrugged, "I don't think so, they would have told me otherwise."

Skulduggery sighed, "I guess it's time that we see where it all happened."

They all nodded and saying farewell to Professor Kenspeckle and thanking him. They went out, met by a group of other detectives that were waiting for their turn for the seeing the body. Valkyrie saw the familiar detective who wore the Sherlock tweed suit and hat.

Instead of the manservant who led them to the 'morgue' room guiding them to the next room, they were greeted by one of the forensic who were covered head to toe by a white polyester suit with a hood, wearing blue plastic over his shoes and a blue mask. His eyes were covered too by massive, magnifying goggles and he was completely covered.

He waved to the four of them excitedly, and before he could introduced himself, he said cheerfully. "Skul-man!"

"Look! It's me!"

Skulduggery looked at Valkyrie confused, then the boy put off his mask and goggles to show himself. Valkyrie smiled to herself and at Skulduggery's understanding of the boy's enthusiasm. It was the same boy who secretly kept the spike bomb safe for Skulduggery.

"Finbar Wrong, how nice to see you." Skulduggery hesitated.

Wring smiled and high fived Valkyrie. "Hey, Val! Hows it hanging with Skul-man?"

Valkyrie couldn't help but smile at Finbar's endless enthusism. "It's been hard work, but you know us."

"Shall we get going?" Wild said, as the boy just stood there in awe of Skulduggery.

He nodded excitedly and led them down a corridor, and continued speaking.

"I have a new job!" He pointed to his outfit.

"I guessed, " Skulduggery noted, his tone dull.

The boy bounced down to a door on the left hand side. "It's amazing, all the blood and stuff. And, what you call it, er.." he thought for a moment. "The forensics." he remembered.

Skulduggery nodded, "That's what you do."

"First day it is!" he said proudly. "Interview was a bit bad though! I thought they would get me to get finger prints and that."

"So, what did you do?" Valkyrie asked, having the sense that Skulduggery was losing the will to ask any questions any longer.

"I made teas." he told them, "I was appointed the tea assistant."

He pointed to a badge on his chest. It read, _tea maker_.

This confused all of them. Valkyrie especially.

"I had your tea before."

A smile spread across the young man's face, "Oh, yeah?"

"It was...great." Valkyrie lied.

When he opened the door to the room, he paused, quickly remembering something. "Oh, you remember Sharon?"

"Who?" Skulduggery half heartedly asked.

"My girlfriend, remember when you met her."

"I haven't even met her, Finbar" he pointed out, "I was in a hurry remember? Like I am now." he hinted, but Finbar didn't seem to recognise it.

"Wait," he said frantically, shaking with excitement. "You can meet her now if you like?"

"Not really," Skulduggery sighed, but the young sorcerer went off into the room and a moment after came back out, dragging someone with him by the hand.

"Sharon, Skul-man. Skul-man…well, you get the idea, and that."

Valkyrie saw that the girl was completely covered too in white and bits of blue. She could've been a boy if she didn't say anything.

"Oh, this one always talks about you, Skul!" She said with the same enthusiasm and excitement as her boyfriend.

This was an opportunity for Skulduggery to act vain. "Oh, well, I have that impact on people."

The boy and girl laughed and there was an awkward silence. Wild sighed long and obvious, and the boy frowned. "Waiting for something?"

Skulduggery sighed, "Nope, just got to solve a case."

Something clicked in the boys mind and he turned around and picked up four overalls, identical to his and Sharon's, from a bench and handed it to them.

"You have to put these on."

The four put them on uncomfortably, Valkyrie having to put off her jacket to wear it over her clothes like the others. When they were done Valkyrie looked at everyone and couldn't suppress her laughter. Especially the look of Skulduggery.

"Still handsome?" He checked.

Then Wild patted him on his bony arm, "Don't worry, Skul. You're still a heart breaker." and winked at him.

Valkyrie made a face motion to Skulduggery and giggled to suggest that Wild liked him. Skulduggery shrugged it off. Valkyrie knew if he had flesh, he would have been blushing.

Finally they stepped over the threshold and took in the room.

Firstly, all Valkyrie saw was dozen of people dress alike her, crouching, stretching over the place, dusting finger prints, placing objects in plastic sachets and taking pictures of the same thing millions of times.

Skulduggery beckoned them forward.

Skulduggery and her inspected the room. She took it on all angles, nooks and cranny's and corners. It was like the room where the detectives were kept and held racks for spears and swords and an armour suit in the corner. Again a dying fire was on a vast fireplace in the centre of the wall in front of them. A desk dominated the room with a wide leather swerving seat behind it. She walked towards it and turned the seat so she could see it. Blood stained the entire leather and dyed the black chair in to a monsoon colour. She took a picture of it at different angles, then beckoned Skulduggery, Wild and Theodore over. They were accompanied by the chief forensic officer.

"Ah, yes." he said when he noticed what Valkyrie saw. "That was where the body was. Slumped over the desk with his head rolled on the floor opposite."

Valkyrie grimaced.

She decided to as well take photographs of the room. She couldn't miss the huge portrait of Major Riddle himself that hung over the fireplace. She saw the face was stern and serious, his face lined and tanned, with his blushing cheeks, and his thin, brown hair. Valkyrie felt uncomfortable and sad at looking at the alive portrait of the person she had seen dead a few minutes before. He wore a gold robe and with his hands crossed over on the table he was propped at, the sleeve of it was slightly lifted over his left forearm and she saw the small black tattoo. She snapped a picture at it.

Skulduggery was at the desk looking around the room on the spot, talking through a voice recorder.

"Murder scene of Jerome Riddle. Body found sat in chair where he had died in. A cut of the head, severed from body slashed from behind. The evidence of the injury came from two swings by a sharp object. Possibly a sword of some kind. The head was found on the floor beyond the desk the body was found by. Room is undisturbed, no signs of forced entry. Windows are sealed tight. Either he had known the killer or killers and let them in. He was working on something while the time of death-" He cut off sharply and stopped recording, reading the documents what Major Riddle was writing when he had deceased.

"Wait a minute…" He murmured more to himself than to the three of them. Valkyrie stopped taking pictures and Elsa Wild and Theodore stopped what they were doing. They moved across to Skulduggery who read off the blood stained page that took most of his interest to them and read into his recorder.

"_I, Major Jerome Riddle have decided to announce the epoch for Warlocks around the world. I have declared that I have chosen the right path for the Warlocks and for them to become equal as Sorcerers as they have wished all these centuries. Warlocks will come out of hiding and we will not fight them but help them. Warlocks are not evil, we have not given them a chance. But now is a time to change the old ways and embrace our brothers, the Warlocks. This is my wish for the world to become-"_

And that was when Major Riddle had died. Just when he had decided to let the Warlocks have their wish he had his head decapitated. It seemed wrong for a Warlock to kill a man that spent all his life for equality. All his work was for nothing.

Skulduggery was silent for a while and Valkyrie, Wild and Theodore waiting for him. Then his head snapped up and frowned.

"This doesn't make sense. Not at all."

"What's the matter, Detective?" Elsa asked uncertainly.

Valkyrie knew what it was. She answered for him. "The Warlocks can't be the suspects."

Skulduggery nodded, but added. "They could've but they hadn't realised he was writing this." He dropped the blood spattered parchment back on the desk.

His eyes widened at a new thought, "Or, we are looking at Anti-Warlocks Extremists."

Elsa seemed to think that was a good option. "Yeah, they knew that he was writing this. He was the only person who could officially allow Warlocks to have equality." but she paused, her brow creased in doubt. "Although, he was indeed too responsible for the Warlocks being kept apart from the public though. If they _had _killed them, then they have automatically risked the Sorcerer World and the human World."

"They are asking for a war!" Skulduggery realised.

Elsa nodded, "Either that, or they are incredibly naïve, thinking they could get rid of the Warlocks by being rid of Riddle."

Valkyrie watched the conversation as it progressed and started to see the complication of the murder and the circumstance's of the murder.

"So, what now?" Elsa asked after a long pause when Skulduggery fell silent, deep in thought.

"I guess we give this to Mr Envy, he's got to see this."

Valkyrie nodded her head, "I agree,"

Wild's brow was creased, deep in thought but nodded too. "Lets see what he has to say."

"Wait a moment," Skulduggery suddenly said. He took out a pot from his pocket and a brush. He opened the pot and there was white powder inside. Valkyrie recognised that the powder was the stuff that the forensics use for finding finger prints. "I just want to make sure he wrote this. That it wasn't planted."

He brushed over the edges of the paper with the powder and Valkyrie saw prints appear out of nowhere. Skulduggery brought out a piece of paper that had assumedly got Riddle's original finger prints on them. Valkyrie thought he must've got that moments before from the body.

Valkyrie saw Skulduggery nod, "It's him alright." and stood up, "Let's go!"

After taking more notes and examining the murder scene, the four of them left for the other order to go and check on the room for themselves.

When they had entered the corridor, Wild stopped Skulduggery Pleasant by the arm.

Valkyrie and Theodore paused to see what was wrong, but she smiled sweetly to them and said. "Theodore, why don't you and Valkyrie here go and grab your self's some coffee from the kitchen. I want to talk to Detective Pleasant alone please."

Valkyrie wasn't sure why she thought it wasn't okay for her. But then she wandered if she was becoming possessive? She hoped she wasn't and said it was fine. Theodore beckoned her to follow him to the way to the kitchens.

As soon the two were gone, Wild turned to Skulduggery.

"Skulduggery," She said, her voice full of concern. "Should you get a girl as young as Valkyrie to be your assistant?"

Skulduggery placed his hands in his coat pockets and sighed. "I think about that all the time. But she's different, she can look after herself better than any detective."

Wild crossed her arms, "Does her parents know she does these thing?"

Skulduggery couldn't trust himself to lie, although he was very good at it, he couldn't lie to someone like Wild, so he shook his head.

She smiled expectantly, "They're not even Sorcerers are they?"

"They're not but she is one!" Skulduggery defended himself and Valkyrie. "She is incredibly special, more than you even know!"

Wild looked sceptic, but sighed and looked about seeing if Valkyrie and Theodore were returning. When they weren't she relaxed and kneeled toward Skulduggery, "However special she is, Detective, she is still a child, a child who should be in school and being a child and not investigating murders."

Skulduggery frowned, or seemed to "Why are you so concerned any way?"

"Because that was how I started, my parents were in this business and I missed out my childhood. She's still growing up, are you even sure that this is what she wants to do?"

Skulduggery couldn't help but to agree with her. He nodded his head, and put his hand out for Wild to shake it, "I will think about your suggestion, thank you Detective Wild."

Wild relaxed and smiled warmly, "Please, call me Elsa."

Skulduggery smiled, "Elsa."

When they heard the two assistants approaching, they broke apart and addressed to there partners.

"Time to go guys!"


	5. Chapter 5

_**Chapter Five**_

_**Life Lessons**_

Skulduggery stopped the car outside Valkyrie's house while her parents were out on there usual shopping trip on a Sunday. After they had left Jerome's home yesterday, they went to their HQ, which was actually the late Gordon's house that was given to Valkyrie through Gordon's will and they developed the photographs that Valkyrie had taken of the room and of the body, they briefly looked over them and replayed Skulduggery's commentary of the case off the tape he had recorded it on. They searched through the evidence bags and filed the clues. They had previously given the note Jerome was writing when he died to Mr Envy, seeing that he should have the utmost important clue in the investigation. After they went through the evidences and other things Valkyrie didn't understand, they visited Ghastly. They had explained about all the detectives needed to work together and about the obnoxious Detective Hugo Spite.

Ghastly sat up a little on his bed after hearing the name. He was interested with the enigmatic man. When Skulduggery describe how terrible he was, Ghastly slumped back down. Although he tried not to show it, Valkyrie knew he was disappointed by the 'best detective in the world'. They left quite later as they attended and caused Guild to scowl at them as they quickly tried to walk away from him and through the door. After a long day, Valkyrie didn't bother to hide her yawn and left Skulduggery. That night she came home early and talked to her parents. She tried to make up a story to her parents about her day, how boring it was and that. After her parents sent her to bed, Valkyrie obliged sleepily and climbed to bed.

The next morning Skulduggery picked her up much later than he normally did and Valkyrie wandered if he had found something out. But instead he wanted just to go over the clues again, and that took most of the day. Valkyrie didn't know why Skulduggery wanted to go through all this again. But Skulduggery was so quiet concentrating she didn't bother to disturb him. Around six o clock, he had remembered that Valkyrie needed to eat, and while driving her back home he had went to a McDonald's drive through and ordered a cheese burger and fries for Valkyrie. To Valkyrie's disappointment they didn't see Ghastly as Guild wanted him to do some therapy and walking exercises. Valkyrie decided it was for the best to leave him be. So she ate hungrily as Skulduggery drove her home. Valkyrie couldn't understand why Skulduggery was so quiet and distracted today. Until the silence drove her mad, she finally cracked.

"Skul! What's wrong with you today?" She turned to Skulduggery, who continue to keep quiet. She decided to chuck a cold French Frie at him. An attempt to catch his attention. This time he didn't ignore it and chucked it back. Valkyrie sighed in relief that Skulduggery was responsive. When they were about half and hour away from Valkyrie's house, Valkyrie said more gently, "Have I done something wrong?"

Skulduggery's head snapped at her, outraged. "Of course not. It's just me, that's all."

Valkyrie raised an eyebrow playfully, "Mood swings?"

"More like panic attacks." Skulduggery replied truthfully. Valkyrie frowned.

"Why?" Valkyrie was extremely concerned. "Are you worried about the case?"

Skulduggery almost started to laugh at her. "No, it's not that. Well, not much."

"Then what?!" Skulduggery was starting to irritate her.

If Skulduggery had eyeballs, he would have rolled them. "It's you. I'm worried about you!"

"Me?" Valkyrie blinked several times at the face of Skulduggery. Skulduggery shook his head at her smiling.

"Why are you concerned about me?" She pressed on, oblivious to his concern.

Skulduggery sighed, "Look at you Valkyrie. Barely fourteen and you already been in a crime scene and been through two near death experiences already."

Valkyrie didn't know what to say, but after a long time, she croaked, "What had brought all this on?"

Skulduggery tapped the wheel thinking, then he said, "It's just that normal kids your age don't go through stuff like you have."

Valkyrie continued to stare at Skulduggery, and Skulduggery sighed.

"It's just seeing you yesterday, with the body. I knew that you shouldn't have saw, and when I dropped you off home yesterday I felt as if I were wrong to put you through that."

Skulduggery hung his head. Valkyrie screamed with laughter that made Skulduggery jump a meter out of his seat.

"Skulduggery, why all this concern all the sudden. First you wanted me to go to school, spend more time at home, and what next? Don't you need me anymore?" Valkyrie suddenly dropped her head. Perhaps that was it, maybe she wasn't the assistant Skulduggery had wanted. She suddenly thought of Ghastly waking up. Was that was what was going on?

"Valkyrie, it's purely me being worried about you. I think I'm dragging you away from your parents and your life."

"But _this _is my life!" Valkyrie exclaimed frustrated. She beckoned to the car around her, including Skulduggery.

Skulduggery smiled soothingly with a small amused smirk to it. "I just want you to perhaps attend school now and again and perhaps take some days off, see friends, talk to your parents. Just for the next two years. And when you're an adult, then we could do whatever we like."

Valkyrie raised her eyebrows incredibly at him. "Two years?"

Skulduggery laughed at the sight of her face, "It's hardly a life sentence."

"What happened about you being the brains and me not needing any?"

Skulduggery shrugged his shoulders, "Two brains are better than one."

Valkyrie rolled her eyes, remembering Mr Envy's speech at Jerome Riddle's.

"Please, don't ever take Rowan's advice ever again. That's just…lame!"

They laughed for a while, and when they finally stopped, Skulduggery became more seriously. "Look Valkyrie, I just want you to go to school now and again, to socialise with people your own age. I'm doing this for your own good. Trust me."

Valkyrie thought that maybe he was right, maybe she could lay off a bit of the supernatural and concentrate on the other boring parts of life. And she did seem to be apart from her parents for a bit. Maybe it won't be that bad, will it? Anyway, she'll only perhaps go to school once or twice each week. Skulduggery didn't want to get rid of her entirely. Well, she hoped not. She eyed Skulduggery who continue to drive, and they were nearing her house. Then, to her despair she finally cried out, almost reluctantly. "Okay, okay, I'll do it!"

"Really?" he almost crashed the car in a wall, after being so surprised.

"Yes, if it makes you stop fussing!" she sighed.

"Great, well, you can start tomorrow." He dropped the bombshell over Valkyrie.

Her mouth dropped wide open, about to protest until Skulduggery stopped the car out of her house and that's when Valkyrie was forced out of the Bentley, still sulking as Skulduggery said he wouldn't be picking her up tomorrow and that not to use her Reflection because he would know. Still not saying anything, Skulduggery waved her goodbye, with a triumphant smile on his face as he left Valkyrie standing on the pavement, looking into space.

She wanted to hit Skulduggery. But with a sinking feeling in her stomach she wasn't sure if she would want to go to school. Everything had changed so much since she last been in school. It wouldn't be right to be among normal, oblivious children after so much she had seen and done.

After gaping for a minute she suddenly realised that she was still standing in the dark by herself. She went out of the cold and switched all the lights on inside. It was weird, she was so used to being away from her house and even stranger that her parents weren't here to meet her. She ran up the stairs and changed into more comfortable clothes. It was only seven but it was dark early and she felt slightly strange seeing only black out of her window and drew the curtains. She suddenly felt as if she was being watched. She ran back downstairs and turned the television on. She didn't want to watch it but felt the sounds coming from it filled in the eerie, unexpected silence. She left the channel on some soap opera, and went into the kitchen, although she wasn't hungry after Skulduggery had brought her McDonalds, so she made herself a hot, sweet tea to ease her nerves. Still with the feeling of being spied on she closed every single curtain and locked the doors. She knew she was over reacting but she didn't take any risks. She carried her tea into the living room and watched some television.

Half an hour later, the sound of the door being opened was heard and Valkyrie's parents entered. They seemed very surprised to see Valkyrie sitting on the sofa.

"Hello darling. How long have you been home?" Her mother, Melissa asked, carrying shopping bags into the kitchen. Valkyrie followed her in with her dad, Desmond to help them unpack.

"Just a while. What have you done today?" She asked her parents, grateful for the company.

"Just shopping, and before we went for a spin around the countryside. How about you dear?" Dad replied.

Valkyrie shrugged, "Just this and that." Valkyrie answered.

"That's good dear." Desmond said a little far away, fumbling through his pockets and his jacket. Melissa rolled her eyes.

"What's wrong?"

"I think I've forgotten something." He answered, looking troubled. Valkyrie smiled to see her dad the way he always was. She had strangely missed this.

"What was it?" Mum sighed, not looking that concerted, more expectant.

"My wallet…I think?"

Melissa smiled and opened her hand bag and pulled out a small black leather wallet. Desmond sighed with relief at the sight.

"I kept it with me just in case. I don't trust you." Mum said, while dad kissed her thankfully on the cheek.

"Are you hungry?"

Valkyrie sat down on a chair, not knowing what to say. Obviously mum had prepared something for supper tonight, the reason why all the bags. She regretted not feeling hungry and thought maybe she could hold more food down but she grabbed her full stomach that was finding it difficult to hold down the McDonalds.

"Er, actually mum, I already ate something. Me and my friends. Sorry." She said apologetically.

To Valkyrie's surprise, mum smiled with relief. "Thank God. Me and your father found this lovely little restaurant in the countryside and we couldn't help ourselves. Honestly Stephanie, I was so worried about you, I was starting to think you had shrivelled up and died of starvation." She laughed uncomfortably.

After they had cleared the shopping in to the fridge and cupboards, they rested in the living room and did what any normal family did. They talked about what they did and they watched television and Valkyrie suddenly realised, although life was more exciting chasing bad Sorcerers and the undead, nothing was more important than your family. And Skulduggery was right, she needed to separate these times equally. Have best of both worlds. Now, she savoured this moment and watched it with her own eyes. Not from her Reflection's memories, but her own.

Valkyrie climbed up the stairs when her parents asked her to bed. But while she sat in her bedroom, sorting out her books for the lessons that she would attend, scared her. Would it be different? Will people noticed how much she suddenly changed from the usually quiet Reflection? Maybe she should keep a low profile? Yeah, that was the best thing. Do not attract attention to yourself and maybe you could live through the day. She tried to reassure herself with those thoughts.

_What's going to happen tomorrow? Vampires to appear and massacre the whole school? _She laughed uncomfortably with that thought and then suddenly panicked.

Her powers.

What if she somehow revealed herself by using her powers accidentally. Now, her powers seemed second nature to her, would she create a fire ball without realising it? The whole class staring at her as if she was a dragon that breathed fire? Valkyrie gulped.

'_Must keep a low profile…must keep a low profile…'_

She willed herself. And when she decided that she was too tired to even bother to calm her nerves she crawled into bed.


	6. Chapter 6

_**Chapter Six**_

_**Too Cool for School. **_

The annoying alarm clock rang through Valkyrie's head like a bell tolling. Until she couldn't take it anymore she pushed down on the button hardly and chucked the duvet to the bottom of the bed. Cool air unfolded her and quickly rushed out of bed. Nerves making her agitated. She figured that although she faced a Grotesquery and vampires and God only knows others, she was afraid of going to school. But school was every child's nightmare.

When she finally put on her dreaded green school uniform, her mother's voice rang up the stairs.

"Stephanie, are you okay?"

Valkyrie stopped pacing across the floor. That must have been making her mother worry about her. Valkyrie tried to ease her voice. "Of course mum. Sorry."

Valkyrie ran down the stairs chucking her school bag on the floor of the corridor and ate her cereal rather too quickly and anxiously, with her mother eyeing her suspiciously. While she ate she kept worrying about Skulduggery and what he would do without her. She was starting to feel left out even when it was only morning. She gathered that Skulduggery was meeting with the other detectives today and exchanged clues and inquiries. Now that Valkyrie was thinking about it, she felt quite relieved that she wasn't in that tense environment again. She could imagine Hugo Spite and his tiny assistant now, eyeing the _competition_, analysing their techniques and giving Skulduggery the dirty look.

Valkyrie almost laughed at the thought, but not for long. With the sinking feeling in her stomach, she sighed deeply into her bowl. Her mother was too busy rummaging in the cupboards to see it.

"What are you looking for?" Valkyrie asked her, popping a spoonful of cornflakes in to her mouth.

"Your father has lost something. Again."

Valkyrie rolled her eyes. Her dad entered the kitchen putting on his jumper over his head.

"Have you found it, dear?" he asked.

"No, when was the last time you seen it?" mum slammed the draw.

He thought for a while, "The car."

"Have you checked the car?" Valkyrie asked.

Revelation past through her fathers eyes. "No, I haven't. But I bet it is in there."

Mum sighed and exclaim theatrically, "God, give me the will to live!"

They both left the house before Valkyrie. They were in a hurry for some job they had. So, after Valkyrie got a kissed from her mum and finished her breakfast, she half-heartedly picked her bag up and slumped it over her shoulder, and left the house.

The dreaded sight of the school gates came into view, and Valkyrie timidly waved to some of her friends. Just before the bell had rang she walked to her registration class early. And sat on the desk where her Reflection normally sat. Before the vast crowd of Year Nines went into the door, she glanced around the classroom and tried to make it seem familiar. The blank white board stared at her, all boring and plain as before. The dank wall paper was a sickly creamy colour and the paint was peeling.

She hated school.

Then the scrum of students squeezed through the classroom door. Valkyrie nearly jumped out of her chair. She hadn't heard the bell. Then the silent room was filled with excited voices talking and catching up with friends. Valkyrie started in her chair, looking across the familiar but faded faces.

Then Mr Watkins, the young form teacher stepped into the classroom carrying the register.

"Okay, calm down now, children."

The pupils sat in their places and faced the teacher. Valkyrie got her jacket off and answered her name after Mr Watkins read it out for the register.

When the register was over, there was a knock on the door.

The class turned towards it to see a tall but big man with thick white hair with a dark grey moustache in his sixties. Mr Connor, the head of Year Nine. But behind him was a tall boy with dark hair, wearing his own clothes instead of the school uniform. He had blue eyes and faint freckles across his nose.

"Mr Watkins," said Mr Connor, "This is the new student who is in your class."

Recognition came across Mr Watkins face and he smiled warmly and walked across the room to Mr Connor and the new boy.

Everyone in the class turned to each other and whispered to one another, looking at the uncomfortable new boy. Valkyrie watched some of the girls blushing and giggling, she rolled her eyes.

"Stephanie," The girl behind her hissed. Valkyrie had to be told twice as she wasn't used to being called Stephanie anymore.

"Steph!" The girl cried loudly. Valkyrie jumped and turned behind her. A short girl with short, blond hair kneeled over the table to her. It was Roisin Marcus.

"What do you think?"

Valkyrie stared, "About what?"

Roisin laughed and pointed discreetly. Valkyrie watched the two teachers talking to each other, ignoring the boy who stood between them. Valkyrie caught the boy's gaze and turned away very quickly.

Roisin huffed, "He was looking at you!"

"Was he?" Valkyrie tried to not noticed, but she still felt the boy's eyes on her. She pretended to look for something in her bag.

Roisin giggled encouragingly. "You go Stephanie."

By the time Roisin sat back into her seat, Mr Watkins hushed the classroom.

"Okay, quiet everyone."

After a while Mr Watkins glared at a pair of boys in the back of the class who were still talking. "Today boys."

They blushed and stopped, and the teacher continued.

"As you all know, pupils, we have a new boy in the class." The boy stepped forward. "His name is Lorcan Knight, and I'm sure you can make him feel comfortable here in Dublin Comprehensive School." he clapped his hands cheerfully and lead Lorcan to his chair.

Mr Connor then left the room and left Mr Watkins to it.

Lorcan had sat on a chair at the very back of the room on an empty desk. Valkyrie watched him sit down and caught his eyes once more. She smiled to him politely as he sat down.

A group of boys took his attention when they shouted to him.

"How come you're not wearing school uniform?"

Lorcan answered them defensively, "I wasn't expecting to go today, and we just moved here two days ago, so I guess we couldn't get school uniform so quickly."

"Roger, Lorcan has already explained to me why he isn't wearing school uniform, so boys, don't quiz him." He told them sternly.

"It's cool, sir." They replied, smiling. They whispered together, watched Lorcan for a moment and started talking about football.

Valkyrie sighed and brought a book out of her bag. Everyone started to interrogate the new pupil and Valkyrie tried not to listen, but Lorcan's answers were interesting.

"Where are you from?" one girl asked, battering her eyelashes.

"County Ross Common." he said quietly.

One of the boys from before, Roger, whispered under his breath to the boy next to him. "Boring."

Valkyrie tried to read the first line of the book, but she must've have read the same line over and over again because her ears were pricked up as Lorcan mentioned why he was here.

"I'm here with my…parents, they were called to do this important job and that we had to move here immediately."

"Oh, really? What do they do?" Mr Watkins, although he looked busy reading a document on his desk he was listening intently and asked politely.

Lorcan shrugged, "They're into this organization, Sanctuary. Have you heard of them?"

Valkyrie gulped in too much air and started choking when she gasped. She tried not to be notice but Lorcan looked at her concerned. So did Mr Watkins.

Valkyrie waved it off, "Sorry, good story plot in the book." She lied, gesturing to the book.

Some girls; who didn't see why they should read books, looked down their noses to her and sniggered. Valkyrie stared coldly at them.

To her surprise Lorcan looked up, trying to see Valkyrie from the back over many heads between them. "What book you're reading?"

He seemed enthusiastic about books, Valkyrie moved her eyes across the room then answered, showing the front cover to him, "Agatha Christie ."

"You like mystery and detectives?" Lorcan asked.

Valkyrie nodded her head. She had got it out months ago but hadn't had a chance to read it. She had been hoping it would help her with future cases and possibly find the technique for when she wants to be a detective like Skulduggery when she was older. She turned uncomfortably back in her chair and began reading again, but still she felt all eyes on her. Then, she was saved by the bell as it rang through out the school and before anyone took much attention of the bell, Valkyrie was out of the room.


	7. Chapter 7

_**Chapter Seven**_

_**The New Boy and the Old Enemy**_

To Valkyrie's relief the end of school bell had sounded and the Maths lesson had dragged on for what Valkyrie had thought hours, and she gratefully packed her things into her bag. The new boy, Lorcan had not been in Valkyrie's class, and Valkyrie was quite glad, as he didn't stop staring at her all day. Not in a dreamy-like fashion, but in a creepy-_I know who you are_- sort of look. It made her feel uncomfortable and like she was a dog on show. At least Maths had given her some space to not to be watched for an hour.

She pushed herself through the crowd to the corridor and unconsciously, looked about her to see if she could see Lorcan anywhere. She didn't know why, but she was disappointed for not seeing him anywhere, and had plan to have a private chat with him to ask what his problem was. She couldn't get the idea out of her head, that he may know who she is, that she is actually Valkyrie Cain and fought magical creatures with a living skeleton by night. But how could possibly a new arrival know her secret so soon? And what was that thing about his parents working for the Sanctuary? Valkyrie shrugged and continued, getting out of the school as quickly as possible. She had been eager to phone Skulduggery all day, to see what he was doing, and if he wasn't coping without her and hoped that he wasn't, so that he could beg her back and she would never have to go to school ever again. But a small sceptical voice in her head kept saying that that was very unlikely.

Finally, she made out of the school gates, waving to some friends along the way that had said goodbye to her. She didn't really have close friends, but she didn't want any enemies in school, so she preferred to be friendly. Anyways, she fought too many evil characters lately that she couldn't deal with some spiteful kids at school as well.

She found a comfortable bench in a deserted park of greenery next to her school and got her phone out. Previously that day she had tried to sneak a text to Skul earlier, but Mr Rogers had caught her and given her a detention, which she didn't really mind. It was normal for Stephanie Edgley to get detention now and again.

She found his number and pressed the _call _button. Valkyrie looked about her to see if any pupils that were walking across the field couldn't eavesdrop on her. She let the phone ring five times, while she tapped impatiently on the bench table and bit her lip.

"Answer Skul! That's what mobile phones are made for!" She whispered angrily.

When the phone continue to ring for another five rings, she gave up and groaned, chucking her phone in her bag disrespectfully.

She folded her arms and looked around, scowling.

She thought about Skulduggery going to the conference where all the detectives will be gathered and exchange their theories of the case today and what was happening,. The day was still young and she could easily slip out of the house with her Reflection out. She thought about Detective Wild and Theodore. Would Skulduggery be with them again? Valkyrie suddenly became jealous. She should be there, with the detectives and solving the case. She still had the competitive side of beating Hugo Spite, and wandered if they would ever beat him. She sighed at the thought, and raised from the wooden bench. She chucked her bag over her shoulder, and glancing to her side saw something unusual.

At the far side of the park were some trees and there were two people standing there in the shade. They didn't give Valkyrie the impression that they were out on an innocent walk, but the two seemed slightly dodgy. They were two men, in their mid-thirties and they wore identical black shades over their eyes. Valkyrie didn't need to see their eyes to see who they were looking at. They had their hands in their pockets the same as each other in same matching macks and shifty hats. Valkyrie tried to not make it obvious she had spotted them and started to walk towards to the exit of the park, and see who they really were. They tried to make them look like they were two friends that had just bumped into each other and were chatting casually, but Valkyrie knew what they were doing, they were watching her. She kept her head down and didn't glance up. But before she realised, she had knocked into an unfortunate who had fallen on to the ground before her. To her horror, as she saw the person, her heart dropped.

It was the new boy.

As soon as he got himself up, she immediately apologised.

"I am so sorry!"

To Lorcan's luck, it had been raining that day and he had fallen into a patch of mud. _Great! _thought Valkyrie.

Valkyrie didn't know what to do as she watched Lorcan rub off mud from his clothes, but while he was doing this he wore an amused smile.

Valkyrie frowned. What was up with his guy?

Valkyrie stood their helplessly, and Lorcan started laughing. This didn't make Valkyrie feel any better.

"In a hurry?" He laughed.

"What?" Valkyrie asked, she was still panicking about staying in the park. If only she had seen Lorcan approached towards her.

Lorcan frowned, "I'm sorry, but you seem…_intense_."

Valkyrie shrugged and shifted on her feet, awkward. "Err, just tired, that's all." She tried to give him a reassuring smile. She wanted to leave, but she didn't want to be rude. They stood their in silence together. She was going to ask him to excuse her, but suddenly he said before her, "My name's Lorcan , I'm in your class, I believe."

Valkyrie smiled politely, "I know, I'm Val-" She stopped anxiously, then, seeing him look confused, she blurted out her birth name. "I'm Stephanie Edgely." She laughed nervously.

Lorcan laughed with her, highly amused by her. Valkyrie started to get annoyed. What was he laughing at?

"Look, my parents aren't ready to pick me up yet, so I was wandering you could show me around the city?"

Valkyrie didn't know what to say. The boy stood before her smiling sweetly, which to her annoyance made her heart beat wildly. She decided she couldn't say no to that smile.

With a shrugged, she said, "Why not?"

"You sure?" Lorcan seemed happy.

"Yes, my parents are still at work, so I guess they won't miss me for awhile."

Lorcan's smile grew even wider, "Thank you, it's just I need to know my way round."

He and Valkyrie started moving the opposite direction Valkyrie was going, and she noticed that they were passing the two men at the trees.

"Where shall we start?" Asked Lorcan as he clapped his hands with excitement. Valkyrie smiled at this enthusiasm, maybe he wasn't such a weirdo after all. She tried to act casual as they walked across the park while she felt the two eyes bore into her back.

"Can I asked you something, Lorcan?" Valkyrie stared at her enfolded hands, nervously.

Lorcan stopped in his tracks and looked at Valkyrie, with a small crooked smile on his lips. "Depends what it is first."

Valkyrie rolled her eyes, and crept closer to him, so he could hear her whisper. "You see those two men over there, under the trees."

Lorcan discreetly turned his head, "Yeah, the two in the hats?"

Valkyrie nodded, "Are they looking at us?"

Lorcan squinted and seeing they were looking at them, he raised his voice so they could here that he was annoyed.

"Yeah…yeah, they _are _looking at us." He exclaim excessively loudly.

Valkyrie elbowed him in the ribs.

"Shush!" She dragged themselves further away, so they could leave quicker.

When they were safely at the gates, Lorcan suddenly asked, "What was all that about?"

"I have no idea." Valkyrie lied. But she had an idea. Could it be the Warlocks? She didn't know, as soon as she shook Lorcan away, she would have to inform Skulduggery immediately.

"Shall we get started then?" Trying to change the subject, she started walking down the street, leaving Lorcan pondering on the spot.

"Hey, you're strange."

"What a nice compliment!" Valkyrie said sarcastically, as Lorcan followed at her feet as she carried on walking.

"No, I mean, you're different to all the others, like fascinating."

This made Valkyrie stop dead in her tracks this time and turn slowly behind her to face Lorcan.

"How do you know? You have only known me for five minutes and suddenly you are calling me fascinating!"

"I have seen you today, Stephanie. You keep to yourself, you have no friends but you don't care and there is something abut you that is…" he blushed, too embarrassed to continue.

"What?" Valkyrie forced him.

"…special." he finished, not looking at her.

_That's it, he knows!_ Valkyrie panicked and dragged him somewhere private in a bus shelter.

"Have you been stalking me all day?"

Lorcan laughed with himself, "I can see why you might think that, but-"

"You've been staring at me all day, and I want to know why?"

Lorcan was taken aback by Valkyrie's aggressiveness. "Look, I was the same like you back in County Ross Common, I was an outcast just like you. I just feel that we have something in common. That's all."

Valkyrie sighed in frustration and then crossing her arms realising that she wasn't going to get rid of him. And she did enjoy the company, even though he was strange.

"C'mon then, do you want to experience Dublin or not?"

And with a huge smile Lorcan nodded and followed her.

"So, what was it like where you lived before?" Valkyrie asked Lorcan as they ate their ice cream, walking down the harbour. They had walked around together for almost two hours and Valkyrie realised that Lorcan was actually really cool. They liked the same music and both described their experiences in school, and how similar it was.

"It was…boring." Lorcan admitted.

"Do your parents like it here, in Dublin?" Valkyrie licked her ice cream.

Lorcan pulled a face, it was between bitter, angry and sad.

"I don't live with my parents." he said quietly.

Valkyrie bit her lip, and said apologetically to him, "I'm so sorry, I didn't know. But I thought you said you moved here with your parents. Who are you living with now?"

Lorcan laughed a bit at Valkyrie's mistake, casually waving it away. "It's fine. I've never known them. They died a very long time ago, before I even turned one year old."

Without thinking about it, she gently touched him on the arm. Lorcan looked at her, and quickly she let go, trying to hide her blush. Valkyrie wondered why she did that, she didn't mean to do that, she never usually been this affectionate. Like for example when she had hugged Ghastly. Suddenly she had became sensitive.

"I'm sorry," she said quickly. "about your parents, I mean."

Lorcan licked his ice cream, and waiting to finish swallowing it until he said, "I'm living with a great foster family, they wanted me to move with them to Dublin. I really think they're thinking of adopting me!" Valkyrie couldn't doubt that he was very excited and she smiled at him.

"Sure they will." She said reassuringly to him. Then remembered what he had said earlier, the Sanctuary.

"Er, you said your foster parents are working in a place called…Sanctuary?"

"Oh, the Sanctuary is just some rehab centre for homeless people. That's all."

Valkyrie sighed in relief silently. So he wasn't a Sorcerer. Shame, she was starting to like him.

"Sounds cool. I'm sure you and your family will love it here."

"Thanks, and sorry about before. You know, about that 'different' thing."

Valkyrie rolled her eyes, "Forget about it. Anyway, I am unusual."

They continued for a while making for the beach, and content of finishing their ice cream, enjoying the silence. Then, the last thing that Valkyrie would imagine Lorcan to say at that moment, he said.

"Do you believe in magic?"

Valkyrie almost choked on her mouthful of cream, which was stuck icily in her throat.

Seeing that she was choking, Lorcan tried to help her by patting her violently against her back. His face creased with worry.

Valkyrie thought how sad it was to be choking on ice-cream. Then it escaped her throat and she gratefully swallowed it down again with harder effort as she had a lump in her throat that had nothing to do with the ice cream.

"Are you okay?" he looked at her concerned.

Valkyrie nodded, coughing silently. "Yes, just wasn't concentrating that's all."

Lorcan frowned, "Thinking about those men?"

Valkyrie actually wasn't but the moment he mentioned them made Valkyrie even more intense.

"Yes." She lied.

"Who are they? MI6?" he tried to laugh it off so to cheer Valkyrie up, but Valkyrie knew that they were even worser than the MI6.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." She said quietly. It wasn't her intention to say it out load for Lorcan to hear, but he did, and stopped in his tracks, holding an arm out to her to stop her too.

"Go on, try me." His deep blue eyes stared intensely and questionably into her own. She starting to shrink back, intimidated by his eyes.

"It's none of your business." Valkyrie shrugged pass him, annoyed by his fuss in her personal life.

Lorcan bit his lip, and apologised to her, "Look, I'm sorry. You've only known me for five seconds. If I go like that again, can you tell me?"

Valkyrie stared at his face and couldn't help but fall for his puppy dog-like eyes. But she said rather amused, "Yes, I could hit you if you like?"

"Yeah, like you could?" He answered sceptically.

Valkyrie posed her fists up and crouched, "Come and have a go if you think you're hard enough." She pronounced Tanith Low's famous catchphrase.

Lorcan laughed, and shook his head, but seeing Valkyrie's determination to prove him wrong, he crouched too, his fists raised.

Just when Valkyrie was about to take a swing, she heard a beep of a car behind her, and both Lorcan and her stood up straight and turned to the sound. Up on the harbour was a car Valkyrie recognised.

A Bentley.

Valkyrie's face spread into a huge grin. She suddenly turned back at Lorcan. "It's time for me to go now. Are you okay for a lift?"

"Yes, my mum knows where the beach is. I'll call her now."

She started her way up until she thought of something. "Hey, do you want my number?"

"Yeah, alright." he smiled.

She quickly read it aloud to him. Leaving Lorcan where he was, admiring the car, she ran up the cobbles of the beach and up to the car. She found a man with bright red, wiry hair, very skinny, big round sunglasses and a scarf wrapped around his bottom half of his face.

"Skul!" Valkyrie walked around the car to face him. "About time, what happened?"

With Lorcan still standing on the beach, Valkyrie was alone with Skulduggery, but he didn't reply.

"Skul?" Valkyrie stepped closer, her brow creasing.

Then suddenly without warning, Skulduggery raised his gloved hand, and ranked his scarf off, but his skull wasn't underneath the scarf.

Instead, the head belonged to Billy-Ray Sanguine. The cowboy Valkyrie had encountered on few months earlier.

Valkyrie tried to run but he reached his hand out and grabbed her arm.

Before she could scream out for Lorcan-by this time he was facing the sea, minding his own business like Valkyrie had told him to do earlier-Sanguine placed his hand over her mouth, and to Valkyrie's horror, he held a napkin, which had chloroform, or a similar chemical in it. Valkyrie tried to struggle against it but it was too late.

As soon as his hand was over her mouth she went unconscious, and the only thing she saw was black.


	8. Chapter 8

_**Chapter Eight**_

_**Trapped**_

When Valkyrie woke up all she saw was darkness and when she finally became conscious enough, she felt she was on some vehicle, bumping across the road.

She tried to raise her head, but suddenly her forehead stroke something hard above her. Valkyrie spread out her tied arms and legs and found out she had limited movement, and her blood ran cold through her body.

She was trapped in the boot of the Bentley.

She screamed and struggled in the boot. Her throat was aching after the chloroform and the driver or anyone who passed the car could scarcely hear her desperate cry. Then she realised of something even worse.

How long had she been here? How much oxygen was there left until Sanguine finally brought her where he wanted to go?

When she had been laying in the dark for further troubled minutes she felt the car slow down in speed. She was sure, but she didn't dare to bring her hopes up. Then a faint, white crack of light appeared at the side of her, and the door of the boot swung open. The cool, welcoming air touched her face and she gulped it in thankfully. She couldn't see Sanguine as he was completely in shadow as he blocked the light. Valkyrie saw the stars in the sky beyond him and cried.

It was night! Her parents would be worried sick about her. And what about Lorcan? Would he notice she was missing, that she needed help? Before she could say anything, Sanguine, with his brown leather jacket back on, his cowboy boots and the Stetson, he reached down at her and viciously grabbed a chunk of her hair.

With that, he pulled her up and dropped her on to the hard, tough ground. Whilst all this Valkyrie kept screaming and struggling. Sanguine started laughing.

"Scream all you want lil' lady, but no one could hear you from miles around."

He kept on his usual sunglasses even at this time of night, as it disguise the horrific fact that he had no eyeballs. He left Valkyrie kneeling against the back corner of the car to breathe and stretch. Valkyrie looked at him with complete loathing.

"So, you finally came back to fulfil your promise." Her voice was small and faint, but she didn't care.

"Oh, Valkyrie, you don't know how much I've been looking forward to this. But I'm afraid I'm going to finish this little cat and mouse chase we have."

Before he walked towards her, about to drag her away again, she wanted to find out something first. If she was going to die tonight, it wouldn't really matter, but if she somehow got away, then that would be a bonus after she manages to get away from Sanguine's clutches a second time.

"Before you kill me, I want to know who you've been working for."

She asked this quickly as Sanguine's hands were only inches away from her scalp.

Gratefully, he dropped his hand, considering her question. He moved his head to the side, scrutinising her with empty eyes.

"Why shall I tell you?" His deep Texan accent echoed around Valkyrie. Since she came out, she noticed that they were in a clearing of a wood. By the density of the trees, she figured they were deep in.

She gulped before she answered hoarsely.

"If you're going to kill me, I want to know why and who sent you to kill me."

He smiled crookedly at her, mockingly.

"I'm not being paid for this. This is particularly _my _will and pleasure to finish you off, girl."

"Yes, but before? The real people you were working with when you pulled the wool over Vengeous eyes. Now, who could be possible to do that, I wonder?"

Valkyrie shifted her feet and her hands to decrease the pressure of the ropes around her wrists and ankles. Sanguine had made it very tight, so to be sure she wouldn't slip away. She waited for Sanguine for an answer.

"I certainly wasn't working for the Vengeous guy, but he sure heck gave me lotta cash to get rid of you and that skeleton."

"Yes, but who were you really working for?" She insisted.

Sanguine raised his eyebrow. "Why do you wanna know?"

Valkyrie shrugged.

"Dying wish." she answered simply as that was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Alright, I'll tell ya." he went on his knees and knelt towards Valkyrie. She tried to move away from him, but he was so close to her that she couldn't move. He was right next to her right ear.

"The people I am working for is The Diablerie."

Then a roaring sound of a motorbike. It was heard coming closer, alarmingly closer.

Sanguine rose from Valkyrie's side and tried to find where the sound was coming from. When he took all his attention away from Valkyrie, she hurried out of the ropes by setting fire to it by her hands. She quickly burnt the ropes away from her wrists and ankles without burning herself.

She saw the motorbike now. Black and lean like a Panther, as it was driven professionally through the dense trunks without crashing in to one. It was coming closer, and it was going at such a speed that it looked like it wasn't even going to stop after it had driven over the both of them.

Sanguine stood up, alarmed and looked as if he was going to embrace the bike coming head on to him, but when it was only meters away, it skidded to a halt.

Valkyrie dragged herself up from the ground, helped by the corner of the back of the car to her feet and almost collapsed as her legs gave way underneath her, as they were incredibly numb. When she got her balance, she stared back in astonishment that the bike had stopped and was facing Sanguine. The person sitting in the bike was tall, slender but muscular, and dressed in brown leather. Valkyrie knew whom the bike belonged to, and with a stab of hope, she started smiling gratefully.

The driver still sat in the seat and removed the helmet. Her long, blond hair streamed out and she waved it loose.

"Tanith!" Valkyrie screamed thankfully. Mistakenly, Valkyrie tried to run across to Tanith Low, as Sanguine was standing there, very dumb folded, but just when Valkyrie had passed him, he reached his arm out and aggressively grabbed Valkyrie by the shoulder and was taken back into his evil clutches.

"Well, well, well. Couldn't get enough of me eh, beautiful?"

Valkyrie struggled in his arms and tried to get out. She kicked, scratch and even conjured flames from her hands, but nothing would get him let go of her.

"Let go of her!" Tanith ordered. She came off her bike and with a swipe of her arm to the side; she held her sword out in front of her at Sanguine.

He smiled at the sword she held, almost in pity. Then he threw Valkyrie onto the ground, and took something out of his pocket.

When Valkyrie had sat up straight, she saw something that look like a Swiss Army Knife but when he pressed a button on the side of it, a long, slender razor-like sword stretched out in front of her eyes from the base.

"You see, before I had a small razor. But now we're square."

Tanith posed herself, smiling too. "But I will still kick your ass."

"We will see about that, pretty lady."

They approached each other, and Valkyrie warned Tanith not to be so cocky.

"It's okay Val, just leave him to me. I won't let him hurt you."

"But I'm worried about _you_!" Valkyrie exclaimed.

Tanith hissed at Valkyrie, not looking at her but keeping her eyes on Sanguine's.

"Not now, Valkyrie!"

She focused on Sanguine, both of them rotating around in a circle. Sanguine broke the tense silence.

"I've been hoping to see you again."

"Really? I don't usually get that compliment, because most people I've fought before, I never see them again." Her voice was hard, but playful.

Sanguine gazed at her and swooned, "God, you're beautiful."

"Do you really want to fight me if I'm that nice?" She questioned him, pausing in the circle a moment.

"Nah, because you need to tamed, need to be taught not to break men's hearts."

Tanith smiled, and started to circle with him again. She teased him. It was her plan to make him not concentrate and keep him talking.

"Like I did with you? Ah…" She tilted her head and pouted. She gripped her hilt and swung it towards Sanguine.

The action started before Valkyrie's eyes, and trying to help Tanith, she shot small fire sparks on to Sanguine's boots, so he skipped about frantically while trying to defend himself with his light-saber-like sword. Valkyrie laughed at the stupidity of him trying to dodge the small flames on the ground. Make him dance, she thought.

There was a clash of metal as the two swords collided. But Valkyrie had to admit that Sanguine was a skilled swordsman. He neatly dodges Tanith's quick strikes and put in some vicious attacks on Tanith too. But Valkyrie knew Tanith was talented and she wasn't doing her best yet by far.

When they had decided to cool it down for a while, as they both had been fighting for ten minutes none stop, Sanguine decided to ask Tanith something.

"I was wondering, about that date?"

"Ha, you wish!"

"Why not?" he asked annoyed. "I mean if I don't finish you off tonight, then what do you say?"

"That you would be finished tonight and because of that, we won't go out. And, besides, I like men with blue eyes."

Sanguine found this particularly funny. "Good one." he started swinging his sword over and under his arm. "But whose to say I didn't have blue eyes before?"

"Then I say, 'why aren't they in your head?'" And she copied him with her sword but done it much faster, in an attempt to threaten him.

"Shall we proceed?"

"Come and have a go if you think you're hard enough."

And with that, they charged towards each other brutally whilst Valkyrie stood up and tried to distract Billy-Ray on his steps. At least she was helping Tanith without actually being in the fight, Valkyrie thought.

Sanguine seemed even more possessed as he threw his sword almost amateur-like and without a sense of direction. Tanith jumped up, down and sideways, trying to dodge the razor sharp blade that threatened to cut her any second. Then, suddenly as Valkyrie shot a powerful gust of wind in the knees of Sanguine, he was knocked off balanced and skidded on the ground and he scraped the end of Tanith's sword in his shoulder. He cried and thudded on to the ground, blood coming out of his wound. He dropped his weapon and clutched his wound. However, to Valkyrie's surprise, he started laughing.

Tanith quickly snatched up his sword and stepped back cautiously, and then he said. "Looks like you win."

Tanith approached him, "Yeah, I do that. Will you surrender?"

"Now? We have just started to get to know each other. I think we'll meet again, pretty lady."

In addition, he turned to see Valkyrie standing few yards away from him. He gave a look of such hatred and hurled his body at her feet and attempted to grab her ankle as he disappeared in the dirt where he laid, but before he could pull her down with him, Tanith struck his occurring wrist with her blade, a deep graze prevented him, and he slivered back into the earth; where Valkyrie knew where he belonged.

Tanith came to Valkyrie and asked how she was.

"I'm fine." Then Valkyrie stopped and looked at Tanith Low. "I can't believe you're back!"

Then Valkyrie hugged her. However, surprisingly, Tanith did not break it but embraced it.

"Good to see you again buddy." She whispered.

Valkyrie and Tanith stopped hugging and Valkyrie thought about what had just happened, then she turned to the Bentley.

"Should we return this to Skulduggery?" She asked Tanith, but Tanith seemed to be getting a spare helmet out of her bike boot.

"We have to get out here, quickly, and on the bike!" She chucked the helmet to Valkyrie in an urgent manner. Valkyrie stood still, not knowing why it wouldn't be better to return in the comfortable car, but then again she loved going on the bike.

"Why?" she said, "We can't leave it in the middle of here, what if someone finds it?"

"They won't be able to find it because it won't be here."

Valkyrie put on the helmet confused and sat behind Tanith who was already starting the engine.

"It's got a bomb in it." Tanith answered her dumb folded thoughts.

"What!"

The motorbike zoomed out of the clearing, on the direction Tanith had come from before.

And answering Valkyrie's disbelief, behind came an explosion, and Valkyrie and Tanith felt pieces of debris falling on top of them and the heat of the flames just meters away from them.

Valkyrie felt Tanith increase the speed and Valkyrie clung on for dear life. She started to feel sad about the car. She loved that car, ever since she ever been in it and she knew too without a doubt that Skulduggery would be sad to have lost a car like that.

With Skulduggery popping into her mind, she yelled over the noise of the engine to ask Tanith, "Where is Skulduggery?"

But Tanith had not answered. She probably didn't hear, Valkyrie told herself. But she now couldn't help but trust the hollow of the pit of her stomach that something had happened to the detective.

Wind roared by Valkyrie's ears and her hands became icy cold when they were wrapped around Tanith's waist. Valkyrie enjoyed it as the bike dip in and out of the trees and Tanith found a dusty, even road in the middle of the woods, and the ride from then on was more gentler. Valkyrie let her mind wonder as Tanith drove on easily and quietly. She found herself incredibly tired. Perhaps the drugs were still in her body system, making her dizzy and woozy. But she still thought about Sanguine. Will he come back? Will he still think that he could try and kill Valkyrie a third time? Valkyrie sighed. Right now, all she wanted was to see Skulduggery. It was strange not seeing him today, very bizarre. Out of place. Valkyrie still felt that something terrible had happened to him, because he would never let his beloved car be taken by that cowboy assassin without a fight.

What about Lorcan? She completely had forgotten about him. Did he know what had happened to her? Did he phone the police? Valkyrie hoped he didn't, she didn't want her parents to freak, and she didn't want to explain tonight. If she did, she would have to reveal everything about the Sorcerers and Skulduggery Pleasant. She hoped Lorcan had returned safely. He hardly knew the place and was he far from home? And, the biggest issue yet. She had got the information the whole Sorcering councils wanted. She had found the missing link. The Diablerie were the people who planned something bigger. They were the people who wanted the Faceless Ones back for good, and they were invisible.

All these questions sprouted in her head like a beanstalk, that beanstalk just kept growing and growing, it soon made Valkyrie's eyelids drop, and she let her head fall to rest between Tanith's shoulder blades.

_Lets take this time to remeber the awesome Bentley for a moment...sad days... :'(_

_Hope you enjoyed Sanguine's return...and also the return of TANITH LOW!!_

_please continue all you're awesome and much appreciated R&R's!! thanks sooo much! :) _


	9. Chapter 9

_**Chapter Nine.**_

_**What happened to Skulduggery Pleasant? **_

_**Part 1 - Fatherhood.**_

Skulduggery drove his dear Bentley through the early hours of the morning. He had been driving endlessly all night and morning, going through the case in his head. He was ready to go to the conference Mr Envy organized and that they would share their discoveries. He tapped his pockets to check if the photograph slips for the projector were still in there safely. He found something quite important and possibly a clue to what the weapon that killed Riddle was. He glanced at the clock on the dashboard, reading 08:37. Valkyrie would hopefully be on her way to school by now, and Skulduggery felt odd that he won't have her company today, but he shrugged it off and told himself it was for the best.

Before he was going to the house, he wanted to see Ghastly in the Sanctuary to check if he had improved since the day before yesterday. He hoped he wouldn't be sleeping, and with a sense of loneliness, turned his car onto the pavement next to the close down Wax Museum. He pushed the hidden doorway in the wall of a seemingly innocent corridor and found himself in the different world were people had before strolled by without any knowledge that next to them was the heart of the Sorcering world.

He stepped into the quiet, deserted grand hall, his light footsteps echoed and Skulduggery wandered if he had arrived too early. He waited for a while, looking around the place, admiring the ornaments that he hadn't noticed before, and even gazed up at the painted globed ceiling. He started whistling a tune that he remembered from long ago, before the secret war, when he was made out of flesh and blood.

Unexpectedly, the Grand Mage appeared out of a door of his office, and seemed not to have noticed Skulduggery standing there. He was busy shuffling through parchments that his nose was buried in deeply as he read them. He hadn't seen him until Skulduggery coughed on purpose to drag his attention away that Guild had almost jumped out of his skin and yelped in fright. Skulduggery tried to suppress his laughter. Thurid Guild composed himself, "What time do you call this?"

Guild came toward the detective suspiciously, his robe dragging on the floor, which gave Skulduggery the impression that he was gliding.

Skulduggery lifted his sleeves up, exposed his bone, and looked at his watch. "8:46 and 21 seconds exactly." Then he paused, "Nope, make that 22 seconds."

"What are you doing here?" Guild went straight to the point.

"I came to see Ghastly, wanted to get something." Remembering the key for the library, which was one of his jobs he had wanted to do today.

Guild shook his head, "He's gone. Back to his tailoring shop."

"Oh," Skulduggery was pleased, as long as he doesn't have to go here anymore.

There was an awkward silence. Skulduggery was going to show himself out when Guild stopped him.

"Where's the girl?"

Skulduggery knew he meant Valkyrie.

"School."

"Ah, so you finally let her go." Guild mused.

Skulduggery shook his head. "It's only temporally; she needs to be a child once and a while. It can be hard to remember that she's only thirteen. But she will be back with me investigating who you really are soon."

"Don't kid yourself. I told you and London that I am trustworthy."

Skulduggery smiled bitterly. Moving around the room, wandering, while Guild's cold gaze watched him intently.

Before Skulduggery could answer, Guild asked a different question. Something very off the topic, which took Skulduggery by surprise.

"Valkyrie is not your daughter, you do know that." When he had finished saying that, an echo repeated it, which made it even more awkward.

Skulduggery stopped in mid step and locked his jaw.

"You don't ever talk to me about my little girl or my wife." Skulduggery whispered coldly.

"I know what you are doing with Valkyrie; you are treating her like she's your child." Guild taunting him.

Skulduggery shook his head. "If I treat Valkyire like my...daughter, then I wouldn't let her do these things."

"But, you're changing your mind now though, aren't you? She's at school, just like any daughter should be."

Than, he realised something with his head falling sideways. "You want to be like a father figure to her, don't you? But you will never be a father again; you will never see your little girl ever again, and that just tortures you."

With that Skulduggery cracked, yelling, "Don't speak of what I'm feeling." Then calming himself, continued silently, his fists clenched. "You don't know what I feel. If you did, you would want to kill yourself because it is so painful."

The room seemed to have gone bigger, quieter, and more empty. They both stood still like statues. Guild took in Skulduggery's sudden emotional outburst.

Then, as if to comfort Skulduggery, he stepped forward, his voice small. "Detective, you need to let go."

"When I finished Serpine, I thought I would have felt more comfortable, like a weight lifted off my shoulders. But I feel like I still need to avenge their deaths. It's as if I need to stop the Faceless Ones myself." He said it to himself rather than saying it to Guild.

Skulduggery had his head dropped, his arms hanging at his side helplessly. This made Guild feel a little guilty, seeing Skulduggery looking so vulnerable. But they still felt the same way about each other, that they were still enemies. Guild started to feel uncomfortable, and straightening himself, he said with a tone of authority, "You will have to go now. I am expecting important people for a very important meeting."

Skulduggery nodded, his voice still small, but with more of an edge with it now. "Don't worry, I will." And he strode to the wall where he entered to the Wax Museum.

_Okay, i hope that wasn't too over the top...well, i just wanted something that would imply that Skulduggery is softening towards Valkyrie and being more pretective because he's feeling father bound with her. I hope that came across without going 'unskulduggeryish' kinda way. _


	10. Chapter 10

_**Chapter Ten**_

_**Part 2 - Case Conclusion**_

A hard knock was sounded at Ghastly's front door. Ghastly was hunched over a sewing machine when he had heard it, and grabbed his crutches kneeling on the table besides him. He awkwardly slipped his arms through them and limped towards the door. Before he had gotten to it, it knocked again.

"Okay, okay. Patients!" Ghastly grumbled, opening the door.

Skulduggery stood on the threshold with his arm up, about to knock again when Ghastly opened the door.

Skulduggery looked down, seeing Ghastly's crutches. "Hello, hop' along!"

Ghastly rolled his eyes but smiled, walking back through the store, letting Skulduggery get himself inside and closing the door behind him. The two of them settled down in the living area behind the store and Ghastly sat back behind his sewing machine.

"What you're sewing?" Skulduggery asked, sitting himself down on the lumpy sofa.

Ghastly stopped, getting his foot of the pedal and lifted the fabric, which was a jacket. "For Valkyrie, I can't bare that she has been wearing that same outfit since I've been gone." Ghastly noticed that Valkyrie wasn't with them and narrowed his eyes. "Where is she?"

"School."

"School?" Ghastly mused. "And is she happy with the idea of going to school?"

Skulduggery shook his head, smiling, "Not one bit, but I have my charms."

"Yeah, charm of the devil, you got." Ghastly replied sarcastically.

"I was wandering, Ghastly," Skulduggery kneeled forward, turning business-like. Ghastly stopped sewing and turned towards Skulduggery, arms raised.

"Whoa, Skulduggery wandering! I think we should all be concerned." Ghastly laughed.

"I was going to go to the conference, as I have spotted something that could be a clue and I was thinking we could go there together."

"What do you mean by _we_?" Ghastly raised a scarred eyebrow.

Skulduggery sat back in his seat, "I mean you could maybe join me. Like old times."

"Oh, no!" Ghastly waved his head and carrying on with his sewing, "I remember what happened the last time it was just you and me."

Skulduggery stood up, attempting to change Ghastly's mind. "Come on, you don't have to go to the Warlocks with me. I just thought that you would like to."

Ghastly pretended that he wasn't listening to Skulduggery at all, and said instead, hoping to distract Skulduggery. "Do you think Valkyrie would like the new, super strong material I have giving her on this jacket?" he held it up, rubbing the jacket with his thumb, "My, how science has evolved in the last year!"

Then he paused and looked at his sewing machine sadly with revelation.

"Actually I need a new sewing machine too. This was actually my old man's sewing machine."

"Hey," Skulduggery nudged him, using the advantage. "How about I get you a new one if you come with me today?"

"You pay a hard bargain, Skul."

Skulduggery could've rolled his eyes if he had them, "You know you want to!"

"Okay, okay!" Ghastly excepted defeated. "I'll go with you. As long as it doesn't involve running or sudden movements."

Skulduggery laughed and promised, and he and Ghastly looked at each other. Although Ghastly didn't show it, he was excited that he and Skulduggery were going to do something together after so many years.

Ghastly saw for the first time the extent of the case as he took in the amount of cars in the drive way.

"Wow, I see what you meant."

The Bently pulled in to a spare space underneath a tree. Ghastly stepped out awkwardly with his crutches and hobbled to the vast building. He whistled. "What a place!"

He and Skulduggery went to the door and pulled the chain for the door bell. They were greeted, if that was the word, by the same, sour faced manservant that he and Valkyrie had accounted two days before.

"Here for the conference, sir?" The butler forced the word 'sir' rather sourly out of his mouth, and looked at Ghastly with disgust and horror. Ghastly just grunted to him which stopped him glaring at him immediately.

"Follow me."

Skulduggery didn't need to though as the detectives were holded in the same chamber there were assembled before. The same room where the armours stood still in the corners and the stone fireplace. But this time, a long table was placed in the middle of the room, with the previous comfortable furniture moved somewhere else instead. This time, however, he and Ghastly were one of the first ones to arrive in the room and only Mr Envy, alittle disgruntled by the presences of Detective Hugo Spite and his nameless small, but vicious assistant wearing the bowler hat.

Spite was followed around the room with a rather swooned woman journalist, who wore puppy dog eyes and battered her eyelids to him in hope to catch his attention. But as Hugo was seen as a selfish and vain man, he couldn't stop looking at his own reflection whenever he passed the mantlepeice mirror. The journalist held a small note pad in her hand, quickly scribbling whatever Detective Spite was saying.

Skulduggery drew nearer to hear what exacally was being said as Ghastly hopped behind him.

"So, when I noticed that the death had not been an accident, I figured out that this wasn't just murder but a World Wide disaster that could place every Sorcerer's life in danger. I had to act quickly and with my trusty assistant by my side, I just knew we were going to solve it."

The jouranlist wrote down every absurd word he said with a flirty smile on her face. Skulduggery interrupted Detective and the journalist scribbling.

"You solved it?" Skulduggery was sceptic.

Spite turned around suddenly, a little startled by Skulduggery's sudden arrival.

"Yes!" He cried, far too loudly, "I have."

And with pride he stood up straight and placed his hands on his hips. It gave Skulduggery a picture of him as a less heroic Superman.

Ghastly came across and laughed, "So, you're the 'famous' Hugo Spite are you?"

As Hugo was a head or two shorter than Ghastly, Ghastly came straight to Spite and the height difference was comical. The journalist looked at Ghastly, but not in disgust, as Ghastly was used to been seen with, but with fascination and, Skulduggery wasn't sure, but he thought too a little admiringly.

She came toward Ghastly with her note pad clasped to her bodice.

"So, whats you're story?" She eyed his crutches, but than scanned his big muscles and his scars.

"Well…" Ghastly was taken aback but liked the attention. "Why don't I tell you somewhere more comfortable." And he led the short, curvy journalist wearing a pink skirt suit to a cosy area in the corner. Skulduggery was surprised but happy for his friend. He picked his thumbs up to Ghastly when the journalist wasn't looking. Ghastly winked over the girl's shoulder.

"Well, well,well," Spite muttered, taken a step towards Skulduggery. "Have you solved the case?"

"You know the rules Hugo, opposing Detectives don't exchange imformation of their own, you should know that."

Spite had his hands behind his back and turned around Skulduggery while he said, "No threat, buddy, because I have."

"Oh?" that was all he said.

Spite smiled in triumph. "You see, I am _the _best detective and I won't be outsmarted, not by a skeleton!" He whispered those words, but Skulduggery could hear the venom in his voice.

Skulduggery smiled, but it wasn't a kind smile. Spite continued.

"I mean, it would been bad to have someone like me to be beaten by someone like you." Skulduggery crossed his arms, and prepared himself to hear what else he had to say. "You know, it would be bad press, and I, as you know, live off it. The lights and glamour. Oh, I thrive from it!"

Then he stuck his finger to Skulduggery, poking him in the chest with his finger.

"What would happen if that had all gone away? What would become of _the _Hugo Spite? I would be no one and I won't have that spoiled by some ameature skeleton detective."

His face had turned beetroot when he was saying these words. And Skulduggery was most amused.

"So, what have you solved?"

"I will tell you later when everyone else arrives."

Detective Hugo stepped back as Detective Elsa and Theodore entered the room.

"Wow, it's dead in here isn't it?" Elsa stated when she looked around at just a few people in the room.

"Literally." Hugo muttered behind Skulduggery's back, and sniggered.

Elsa came up to Skulduggery, and noticed that Valkyrie didn't accompany him.

She smiled, "You took my advise."

"Of course," Skulduggery admitted, "I knew she had to have a break once and awhile."

Just then, Ghastly and the journalist came at their side. The woman still looked wide eyed and fascinated by him, she held a small type recorder towards him.

Ghastly was in the middle of saying, "…and so I was turned into a statue! When I woke up I didn't have a clue where I was. Seemed only seconds, but years went by."

"Oh, you poor thing." She said.

Before Ghastly could reply, Skulduggery nudged him as Mr Envy took his place in front of the fireplace.

"Please, detectives, sit down at the table." he invited

Once everyone chose a chair and sat down comfortably, Mr Envy continued, with his hands entwining nervously.

"As you can see, not many of the detectives have arrived today. Well, I have some terrible news. It seems that our friends have gone missing."

Everyone except Hugo and his assistant gasped.

"I know this is a shock, and it is clear that who ever is involve with Riddle's murder, they are definitely involved with the missing cases. Forensics have not found any clues about the murder, and, while we still have a handful of you here today, we will solve this case!"

Skulduggery stood up, the picture slips in his gloved hand, "I think I've got something."

Mr Envy looked bleary eyed at the pictures in his hands and nodded.

"That is very welcoming!" Envy whiped his sweating forehead. It was clear he was panicking. Ghastly helpfully drew the projecter that stood in the corner of the room to a blank white wall where Skulduggery stood.

Everyone shifted slightly in there chair to get a better look.

Skulduggery slipped in a slide across the projecter, Ghastly switched the lights off and sat down.

The first image was of the Riddle's office. A dark panelled wall with a spear rack attached on. Inside it was four medieval spears, but there should have been five. There was a gap in the middle of the display where the fifth should have been, but it was empty.

Skulduggery pointed at it, "This is the weapon that killed Major Riddle."

Everyone was silent, deciding over whether they agreed to it or not. Hugo Spite suddenly sounded, "And how do you suppose that then. It might've been like that before the murder."

Skulduggery slided over another picture, and now there was a different picture. This time it was more different. It was divded with two different pictures, side by side. On the left was the bloody wound of Riddle's neck, and on the right, a close up of the spear's sharp blade.

Skulduggery pointed to the jagged edges of the spear's blade, "See the markings?" he asked the spectators, and then he circled his two bony fingers around the wound on the next picture. "It is completely the same as the markings around the flesh wound."

He stopped and looked at everyone.

"Ladies and Gentlmen, this is what killed Major Riddle."

It was silent of a while, until Mr Envy suddenly jumped out of his seat and starting applauding, "Well done, Detective! I knew you could do this!"

Hugo spite grimaced at Envy, and Ghastly stopped Envy from shaking Skulduggery's hand, "Stop, there is still more."

"Ghastly is right, I am not finished."

"Oh?" Envy muttered, "What else have you discovered?"

But before Skulduggery could go on, Detective Spite stood up to catch Envy's attention. "Mr Envy, may I have a chance to voice my conclusion to the case?"

"You will have your go after Skulduggery has had his." Envy waved his hand at him, which made Spite's face go bright red with anger. No one had ever dared to dismiss or even speak so rudely to him before. Reluctantly, Spite sat back down, but not before throwing Skulduggery a look that could've killed him, if he weren't already dead in the first place, that is.

"Right," Skulduggery said, and slidded in a new picture slide. It shown the painted portrait of Jerome Riddle that Valkyrie had taken. Skulduggery pointed to the tattoo on Jerome's arm.

"As you know, Jerome had a significant tattoo on his arm. In this picture the tattoo is clearly on the right arm. But on this one…" he slided another picture in, the picture of the dead body of Riddle, with the close up of the tattoo. "…the tattoo is on his left arm." Everyone sat forwards in their chair, squinting at the pictures and then suddenly realising he was right. Envy gasped, "The forensic detectives missed that." he paused, remembering that the same Forensic Detectives were the ones who were kidnapped and possibly held captive. "Ah, I guess they _did _found out."

"Does anyone know what this means?" Everyone was silent, but they knew what it meant. "It seems Jerome hasn't been murdered at all. We've been hoodwinked."

"So, what you are saying is…Jerome has been in it all along?" Hugo said.

"Possibly, or held for ransom with the Warlocks or being forced to help them with world domination."

Through out the room discussion, Elsa and Theodore were unusually quiet. They sat in their seats with their heads bowed, and their hands at their inside jacket. It was only with the movement of their arms did everyone suddenly focused on the two and actually realise what was happening.

Elsa and Theodore were at the back end of the table, and mostly submerged in the shadows. But within that, they had heard Skulduggery unfurl the case before their ears, and they looked at each other and decided that their real identities would be revealed.

They reached into their jackets and when everyone was too involved in what Skulduggery had discovered, they took the advantage and when they noticed the movement it was too late.


	11. Chapter 11

_**Chapter Eleven**_

_**Sanguine's Luck.**_

_The cowboy wriggled out of the earth covered in dirt. He shook himself and looked at his surroundings. He was here. At the late Major Riddle's fifteen acre garden. He had been informed that he would find the Skeleton and the girl here. The girl was why he was here. He had some unfinished business to do. _

_Sanguine crept to a window at the side of the house, it was a breezy, cold day, and he wanted to get it over with. Careful not to show himself, he peeped through the window and sure enough, the skeleton was present. He was standing next to big man wearing crutches with scars littered across his face. He scanned pass them, trying to spot Valkyrie. He saw other people he had not ever seen before. He concluded that Valkyrie, for once, wasn't with her partner. He left his spot and walked rather sulkily to the front of the mansion._

"_Typical, I go and find the girl and now she's not even with that Skulduggery guy." _

_He looked up and found the detective's Bentley parked underneath a tree. _

_Sanguine got an idea, and smiled to himself. "Billy-Ray, you are a genius!"_

_He had once hot wired a car, but it had not been so expensive as this car. He had to admit it was sweet and whistled at the sophisticated car. Shame he was going to blow it up. He casually walked towards the car, hands in pockets, and stared through the windows. He had saw Skulduggery's coat, wig, hat and glasses on the passenger seat. Another idea came to his mind. _

"_I'm on a roll!" Sanguine applauded himself, and picking the car door lock, he had opened the door. To his surprise no alarm went off and he cheerfully jumped into the driving seat. He bent underneath the wheel and cut some wires and connected others and with a jolt, both car and Sanguine's heart, the engine started. _

_But he had one problem, where is the girl? He got his phone out and called the same person who had told him that Skulduggery would be at Riddle's. _

"_Hey, erm, Valkyrie ain't here. I was wandering whether you know where she is?"_

_He grinned when his trusty mole told him and he stepped on the accelerator and skidded out of the grounds. _


	12. Chapter 12

_this will be one of the last chapters i'll be publishing for a while. i thought i'll leave you chapter 13 as it joins with 'Sanguine's luck' chapter. so you wont get confused. Thanks soo much for your R&R's!! please keep them up. Im just resisting temptation to post everything at once but im gonna leave you with a cliff hanger for a while...so enjoy this chapter and the next...coz it may be a while till i'll update...mwhahaha...im so mean!! _

_I hope new readers would take alook at this story too, so im gonna slow down. _

_thanks sooo much for you're much appreciated support!!_

_Rhos Furey!!_

_x_

_**Chapter Twelve.**_

_**Invasion of the Warlocks. **_

Fire suddenly erupted in the room and bullets flew everywhere. Skulduggery dived and rolled on the floor and ended up underneath the table. All the others had followed suit. Ghastly was at Skulduggery's side already. Ghastly had a look of pain in his eyes.

"You've been shot?" Skulduggery asked concerned.

Ghastly shook his head. "My legs. They hurt when they move." He grimaced.

Skulduggery produced the twin pistols from his jacket and crawled out from under the table. Once the firing had subsided he found his opportunity and ducked over the table and aimed his shot and fired. He saw that Elsa and Theodore had back up and five more people were fighting with them.

Skulduggery got out and produced a flame and threw it square in the face of one burly man with a bandana across his forehead. He was incredibly huge, his head just skimmed the high ceiling of the room. With a mere swipe with his bin lid hands he waved the flame away and stomped towards Skulduggery. The man's muscles were growing larger and tore through the material of his shirt. Skulduggery was astonished to see his skin turning green and stared dumbly at the man before him, not believing his eyes.

"You got to be kidding me!" he laughed, "The Incredible Hulk?"

The man roared when his metamorphous was complete. And Skulduggery muttered the words, "Don't make him angry."

He hurled fire balls to the Hulk Man and was glad to find that he couldn't approach him as he was being distracted by the fireballs. Skulduggery took the opportunity to look around the room.

Ghastly had recovered and was fighting a lizard-like woman, with scales and claws. Her forked tongue sprouted from her mouth and she swiped with her claws to Ghastly while Ghastly was threatening her off with his crutches he branded. The crutches seemed to produce bullets from the end. _Handy_, Skulduggery thought.

He found also, Mr Spite shooting a sleek revolver to Elsa Wild, she had seemed to spare her powers and continued to used her deadly grenades and her gun.

Mr Envy had used his powers, to be able to read minds and read his oppositions to dodge the attacks. He used a handsome hand gun to defend himself. His opponent was a tall, slim man who wore black on one side and white on the other, with a cape and mask with the same theme. He held a cane and his cane stroke lightening and he jumped about on furniture and ceilings. He jeered at the older, less fitter Rowan Envy.

Skulduggery returned his attention at his Warlock just when the Hulk swipe his tree trunk arm at Skulduggery's direction and threw him to the other side of the room and painfully hit the mirror over the mantelpiece.

Bits on mirror and debris landed on Skulduggery as he fought to get up. The Hulk bounded towards him, roaring and beating his chest. Skulduggery just in time conjured wind and the Hulk was sent flying through the window.

The wall collapsed and stone bricks crumpled out on the garden where the Hulk laid hurt. Skulduggery saw Ghastly now combating what looked like a boy. He wore a type of helmet, similar to what the Cleavers wore. Lightenening appeared from his hands and stroke Ghastly square in the chest and pinned Ghastly to the wall. Skulduggery found a ball of spikes connected to a chain and threw it to the bolt of lightening. They tore and Ghastly was realised.

He tried to find Elsa, but she had disappeared. The now invisible Theodore was now fighting off the determined Spite and now Spite was using a spray can that he had in his brief case and sprayed it in to thin air, and the red paint caught parts of Theodore moving around Spite. The American hit the spot where the paint found the boy and conjured flames, which made Theodore lose concentration and become visible.

Spite saw Skulduggery watching.

"Elsa went that way!" He shouted and pointed to the broken door. Skulduggery ran to it, dodging flying jinxes and falling debris.

Skulduggery skidded in the hall and decided to go upstairs, and found a corridor full of doors.

Skulduggery held his pistol above his shoulder and kicked each individual door and found empty rooms.

The last one, he kicked open and sure enough Elsa was found in the room where the body of the reflection of the Major was found.

Elsa smiled and held something behind her back. Skulduggery pointed his pistol to her head.

"So, you were one of them all along."

"You bet I was. But being a warlock...or a witch and all that, I had to make sure you were manoeuvred away from our real plans."

"And what are your real plans?"

Elsa moved towards the window.

"Don't move!" Skulduggery commanded, Elsa stopped and laughed.

"What are you going to do? Shot me? I like to see you try!"

She hissed and flew over Skulduggery's head and Skulduggery shot overhead, trying to catch her. But she was too fast.

She fled the corridor and shot shadows to Skulduggery. Skulduggery tried to see what she held, and chased after her. They made it to the staircase and Elsa flew down the stairs and blew the front doors open. But behind the doors was Ghastly and he produced wind that blew her away up to the chandelier.

She crashed into it and the chandelier came smashing down on to the marble floor.

She struggled up, "That's it. No more Mrs Nice!"

And she turned the staircase railing into a huge, thick venomous snake. It slithered down and hissed, it's fangs thick and unwelcoming. Ghastly and Skulduggery ran away together from the hallway into the dining room. The demented Elsa, screamed hysterically to the snake, and the snake followed the two Sorcerers.

Ghastly and Skulduggery blocked the door with the tables and chairs stacked up on it, barricading the door.

"How do you hide from a snake?" Skulduggery asked Ghastly.

Ghastly shrugged, "I used to breed dogs. Not snakes!"

They stood where they were for a moment. They couldn't hear anything on the other side. Perhaps the snake couldn't get through the door. Or maybe Elsa summoned it elsewhere. They both looked at each other, body tense.

Then a loud rumble came from the centre of the room, the tiles sank under and a burrow was made. Skulduggery whispered.

"Uh oh."

The burrowing snake crashed into the room, its head wagging around, it's tongue sprouted out of it's mouth continuously.

It was silent, and Ghastly and Skulduggery stood on the spot, unmoving. They were too shock to do anything. Then after a few moments, the snake's head turned towards them. They both held their breath, posed for a sudden attack. But the snake didn't seem to have noticed them. It hissed frustratingly. And the two noticed that it had a head of scales over the eyes of the snake. The snake, luckily, couldn't see.

But they both knew that a snake, or any other reptile had great hearing.

The snake seemed to grow bored and started to go back underground until Skulduggery's phone started to ring.

The snake snapped at their direction, screeching, fangs bared.

Ghastly and Skulduggery ran around the blind snake and Skulduggery stopped the phone from ringing. He found out it was Valkyrie ringing.

"Valkyrie, now is not the time!"

Over their shoulders they flew flames and water from their hands which struck the snake unawares. They found the kitchen and it was almost medieval. The most dominant part was the fireplace. It stretched to either side of the wall.

Skulduggery went to Ghastly, "Stay in the corner. I have a plan!"

Through the unclosed door they saw the snake appearing around the corner, skreiching with anger.

Skulduggery held his phone in his hands and switched a ring tune on. The phone was soon playing a song.

The snake paused, heard the music, and speeded up. Skulduggery waited next to the stone fireplace, the phone underneath the chimney.

"C'mon, slither!" And he chucked the phone as hard and high as he could up the chimney. The snake followed the sound and slithered towards the phone, up the chimney. It continued to go up until the chimney started to get narrower. The snake got stuck and wriggled to save itself. It cried and screeched, but the two Sorcerers had stopped the snake.

They both sighed in relief.

Remembering the other detectives they ran to the room where the chaos had begun and to their horror the detectives were beaten and was captured in magic shackles.

The detectives tried to warn Skulduggery and Ghastly but their mouths were bound and both Ghastly and Skulduggery were hit over the head from behind. They both fell unconscious.

Ghastly woke up and Cleavers were before him, Mr Bliss kneeled down to Ghastly and asked,

"Are you alright?"

Ghastly rubbed the back of his head where he had been hit and sat up. "Yeah, a bit bruised but otherwise alive."

Ghastly saw he was in the same room where he had been hit. It seemed the Warlocks had just left him. The room was full of rubble and one of the walls were gone, the room looking at the garden.

"Where have they gone?"

"We are not sure. Do you know what happened?"

Ghastly nodded, standing up. "The Warlocks came. Elsa Wild, she was one of them. Certainly fooled Skulduggery. Then me and Skulduggery were chased by a giant snake. Its stuck in the chimney."

Mr Bliss raised his eyebrows like he had never heard anything quite like it. He turned to one of the Cleavers. "Check if there is a snake in the chimney. It could still be harmful."

"Do you have any idea where they could've taken Skulduggery and the others?" Mr Bliss asked Ghastly.

He shrugged. "No, I don't have anything to do with it. I was just giving Skulduggery a hand."

Suddenly the Grand Mage entered the room.

"Fantastic, absolutely fantastic! Why didn't Skulduggery tell me about this?"

"He's been kidnapped. The Warlocks have got him."

Guild looked angrily at the mess. "Major Riddle would be turning in his grave if he saw the state of his home!"

"He isn't turning in his grave, Grand Mage. Riddle's alive, and he's helping the Warlocks in whatever they are trying to achieve."

Guild stared at Ghastly as if deciding whether to believe him. "He's alive?" Guild whispered. "He's alive?!" And that time he shouted it.

"Who on Earth came to this ridiculous conclusion?"

"Detective Pleasant." Ghastly answered.

"Skulduggery Pleasant?!" Guild hissed, "Why would he think such a thing?"

"The real Riddle wasn't dead but the body had in fact been the dead body of his Reflection. It seems he has used his Reflection a great deal. It's almost fool proof."

"Yes, fool proof…" Guild muttered. "…TO A PAIR OF FOOLS!" He erupted angrily.

It had taken time to calm the Grand Mage down and Ghastly and Mr Bliss left the Cleavers clearing up the place with other councillors.


	13. Chapter 13

_**Chapter Thirteen**_

_**The Mistake.**_

_Sanguine sank in the chair, head bowed as the leader of the Diablerie drowned on._

"_Why, oh why did you tell her about US!" yelled the man. He was pacing across the floor, nearly ripping his hair out with madness. Sanguine only shook his head like a little boy. _

"_I dunno, I thought that as I was gonna kill her, why shouldn't she know."_

_The leader laughed humourlessly. "Yes, but you didn't kill her, did you?"_

_Sanguine was quiet. The man continued, thrilled that he was making Sanguine feel completely uncomfortable and guilty. "Was it really hard to kill a young girl, just one small, little girl?" He taunted him. _

_Sanguine raised his head, frowning, "Hey, there was that Tanith girl too." He defended himself. "I would've killed that Valkyrie girl if it wasn't for her."_

"_Tanith? The blonde?" He raised an eyebrow. _

"_Yeah, but don't judge her by appearances, she's lethal. You ever seen _Kill Bill_?"_

_The man sighed, not seeing the point of this. "No."_

"_Well, theres this lady in it, and shes just like Tanith. Do you know how many times that woman kills in that film?!"_

_The man raised his hand in frustration. "Stop this." _

_The people in the room all looked up at his command. The room was filled with the Diablerie members, wearing ordinary clothes and some were even playing poker.. _

"_We will find the girl." He addressed the whole room now. "And I think I know who will help us."_

_He turned to the corner of the room where it was at shadow. A lone lamp nestled in the middle of a table, and someone reading a book. _

_The peron reading it however sat forward and his face came into view. He was young. Very young. Fourteen himself. Dark hair and blue eyes. His name was Lorcan. Lorcan Knight. _

_The boy had listened and nodded to his leader. _

"_I will Master." and he sank back in his seat and continued to read out of his book. _

Okay...I've never seen Kill Bill but I guess Uma's character does kill quite abit in that. Hope you like the little twist with Lorcan Knight! ;)

Hope you're enjoying so far!

Thanks for all your great and awesome R&R's. It means lots from all of you fantastic writers!!


	14. Chapter 14

Sorry, sorry, sorry, I've never intended it to be THIS long until the next chapters!! anyway, I still haven't finished it as I've completely re-written and re-plotted the ending. It's far more harder as I'm ending the story knowing what has happened in the 3rd book where i started before the 3rd book came out. I hope you enjoy these chapters! Thanks.

Rhos Furey.

**Chapter Fourteen**

**Answers**

_Valkyrie woke up finding her head feeling heavy and groggy. It took her a while to be able to open her eyes as her eyelids were so heavy but when she finally did, she noticed that she was resting in a double bed. The sheets were crisped and white. The room was vast and simple. Everything was white with a mirror that hung on one wall above a dressing desk. There was two doors, where one was opened to show the private bathroom inside. The room was dark, except for the light that went thought the gap in the door to the bathroom. She rubbed her eyes and crawled out of bed to the beam of light. She glanced at her arms and saw for the first time that she wearing a blue silk dressing gown. Embarrassed and confused she looked around for her clothes, but she couldn't find them. She wondered, rather embarrassed who had undressed her and where her clothes were. But most importantly, where was she? _

_She entered the bathroom and faced the mirror cabinet over the sink. The bathroom was stylish and again white. She groaned as she saw how rough she looked. She noticed a bruise on her forehead, purple and new. It gave her a throbbing headache, and opened the cabinet to see if there was any paracetamols inside to make her feel better. She rummaged around and found a small bottle of aspirin there. She took two and washed her face so to feel fresh and more awake. She couldn't do anything about her bruise and decided to forget about it. She had more pressing matters. _

_She went out of the bathroom and found the switch of the bedroom lights. When the room was full of bright light, she looked for her school clothes once more, but still couldn't find them. So, she went to the curtains and drew them. The room was four grounds up and the view showed the lights of Dublin. It was still dark outside, but she wasn't sure about the time. How long had she slept? Was it only hours, or a whole day? She knew where she was now, she recognised the scenery and the setting outside of the building. She was in China's apartment. _

_She started as she remembered the night, or however long ago, when Tanith had rescued her from Sanguine. She recalled the Bentley blowing up and horrid Sanguine disguising himself as Skulduggery to catch her in a trap. She hurried across the room to the second door, she assumed this was the way to the living part of the building. She crept through the doorway and around the corner where she could hear hushed voices. The sound of the voices sounded like they were arguing. Valkyrie stayed hidden to hear what they were saying before they would stopped abruptly when she would show herself, like people normally did when they didn't want children to hear anything important. _

"_So, what do you think the Warlocks want him to do exactly?" It was Tanith Low._

"_I don't think the Warlocks want _him." She heard China's voice say. There was a silence, as they looked at each other. Valkyrie knew what was coming next.

Surprisingly Ghastly was there, "Give him some credit, he's more special than he looks."

"Then, what do they want from him?" China asked, "Surely they know about Valkyrie and her descendants."

"True, but Skulduggery has something much more special."

"And what is that?" Again, everyone was silent. They were all intrigue in what Ghastly was going to say.

Valkyrie leaned closer, making sure she could not be seen around the corner. But as Ghastly was going to say something, the phone rang which made everyone jump. Instantly China answered.

"Skulduggery?" She asked automatically and hopeful. Tanith and Ghastly gathered around her, her face was like a mask. Valkyrie took the risk and peeped her head and saw that China was frozen, her face set in stone. After a few moments, she nodded, wrote something down on a scrap of paper and said "Yes." Her tone turned turn aggressive. Then she hung up. They all stared at her, wanting to find out what that was all about.

"It's the Warlocks." She turned rushed around the room suddenly, touching random parts on the walls and symbols lit up. "They're here."

Valkyrie took this moment to reveal herself. "Val!" Tanith ran towards her and opened her arms wide and embraced her. "I'm so glad you're okay!"

"You too, thanks for saving my life."

"No problem." Tanith winked and ran to the corner of the room where she pulled out her sword. Ghastly rushed across to Valkyrie, limping slightly, a bundle in his arms.

"Quick, put them on!" Ghastly slightly smirked at Valkyrie's night gown and blushed, embarrassed. Valkyrie ran to the bedroom and quickly shoved the trousers, that fitted perfectly, her boots, tunic and jacket.

When she returned she saw everyone was in place of a sudden attack. The Warlock's apparently were coming, but Valkyrie had no idea what the hell was going on. She just had to take it from her. She stood next to Tanith, posed.

It was quiet for the remaining seconds, the lone clock ticking away the those long seconds. Then a low rumble, the floor shook, the walls buzzed, pictures smashed on the ground, and then a knock at the door.

The four of them looked at each other, bewildered, prepared and slightly bored.

than they realised there wasn't just one ticking in the room, the clock on the mantle piece ticked it's seconds, but a second, new ticking, out of beat of the clock's, was louder, and more foreboding.

"BOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!"

The door they were all looking at exploding with splinters and deadly, sharp pieces of wood flew towards them, they ducked behind either the sofa or the coffee table. Valkyrie dived at the ground, hands over her head and felt shards of glass from the broken mirror beaten by flying bits of the door scratch her hands, but the new outfit Ghastly had made her spared her arms and legs and body.

After the debris had settled, all was quiet again, but the cry of China alerted everybody back to action from the shock.

China was pinned to the wall, her feet inches from the ground underneath, her eyes wide and struggling for breath, the odd thing was, no one was actually pinning her on the wall.

Ghastly leapt to his feet in a groan and tackled down the air before China. Strangely Ghastly collided into something and wrestle the invisible person onto the ground. Ghastly constantly and consistently powered down blows on the enemy and grunts were heard from the opposing.

Valkyrie and Tanith quickly got up to help China on to her feet, but China shrugged their arms away and touched the floor boards where Ghastly was kneeling over.

A quick flash of blue light appeared and the 'Invisible Man' appeared before them.

Ghastly stopped beating the guy up and slumped back, exhausted.

Valkyrie's eyes widened and her eyebrows came so far up her forehead she thought impossible.

It was Theodore, Elsa Wild's mute sidekick. What the hell was going on? She thought.

Ghastly nodded his head and answered Valkyrie's look of shock. "He was at the fight in the mansion of Riddle, could turn himself invisible. No Sorcer can do that as far as I'm aware."

Theodore could not move in China's lock charm of her hidden Symbology. Theodore caught Valkyrie's look and smiled. "Hello, Sunshine."

The sound of his voice surprised Valkyrie as much as his appearance. "You can talk?"

Theodore smirked, as if that was the most shocking of all that had just happened. "Aye, I can. I couldn't speak while i was visible else when i was Invisible someone could recognise my voice and know it was me. I wanted to remain anonymous." He was Scottish.

Valkyrie had to get around to it. "So, you're a Warlock, after all this time?"

Ghastly answered Valkyrie instead, catching his breath. "Elsa and Theodore were double agents. They were trespassing the case and filling in the information to the Warlocks. Who, the leader so happens to be is Major Jerome Riddle himself."

Valkyrie turned to Ghastly this time. "Sorry?"

Ghastly had told the story to Valkyrie about what happened the previous day. Theodore just sat there, unable to move struggling and sneering.

Meanwhile, China tried to sense any other unwelcome guest around the radius of the building and beyond. But it seemed they had only sent along Theodore.

Tanith shackled Theodore as they allowed him out of the Lock Charm circle and placed him on a chair, opposite Tanith and Ghastly. They made it seemed like an Interview Room. Valkyrie was at the background, kneeling against the wall, trying to piece everything she had missed together. China continued to check security and waited for her brother, Mr Bliss to show up.

"Why have you come here?" Tanith asked, but it was obvious that Theodore had been sent to kill them. He confessed he was their assassin.

"I was told to kill you. Except her." He pointed to Valkyrie, his dark eyes staring straight at her eyes and after several unnerving seconds of his deep gaze, she turned away. He was frightening.

Ghastly sat forward, "Why? Couldn't you just finish her here and then if you wish to kill her anyway?"

"Who said _we_ were going to kill her?"

Tanith raised and eyebrow. "Who else wishing to kill her?"

Theodore sat there, unmoving, her face smiling, looking pass their shoulders straight to Valkyrie behind them even though she was half in darkness. He face was a sign of a madman.

"Theodore!" Ghastly yelled at him, trying to get him to respond. Theodore spat in Ghastly's face, which soon, Theodore would regret of doing. Ghastly punched him right at the nose and the unpleasant sound of bone breaking, Valkyrie cringed at Theodore's scream.

"Answer!" Bellowed Ghastly.

Without any notice by Valkyrie, Mr Bliss suddenly stood behind Theodore, as quiet as a mouse, but his face stone cold.

"I think you should leave him to me, Mr Bespoke, Miss Low." The two nodded, and Valkyrie decided to leave too. She didn't want to experience Mr Bliss torture Theodore. "I'll make him sing."

The library didn't give Valkyrie the comfort it usually did. She scanned the shelves of books for any titles about Warlocks. there were none she could find there.

China was sat at a reading table, a intricate china cup in her hands, she sipped delicately.

"Do you have books on Warlocks?" Valkyrie asked China.

"I have the biggest collection of magic books Miss Cain. Of course I do."

She guided Valkyrie to another room where she had never been before. It was dark, very dark, their was no windows, now other light sources apart from China's and Valkyrie's ball of flame in their hands.

"I keep my most precious book out of the light. It spoils them."

Valkyrie tried to read some words off titles, "_The Art of Necromancy_.", "_The Sceptre of the Ancients, the First Stand._", "_The Diary of Marion De Scary, the first Grand Mage,_" and so on.

They stopped at the centre of the whole room where a book in the centre of the shelf was placed. Leather bonded, which Valkyrie thought was Cow skin, but China told her otherwise.

"This book is priceless and is bounded with the skin of a Sorcerer killed by a Warlock in the First War."

"Nice," Valkyrie felt uneasy as China handed it to her. She touched it, her blood went cold. This person whose skin it was, without dignity, was bounding a Warlock book.

Valkyrie skimmed the pages. It wasn't light reading, but Valkyrie had to try and find Skulduggery and the other's who were held hostage and needed to understand what the Warlock's are planning to do.

It wasn't when she saw the words, 'Bone's of a King' did she stop and read the page.

..._The Apocalypse would require the Bones of a King, Power of Resurrection, blood of Mortals and Power of the Ultimate Warlock. On the day of reckoning, these valuables would be sacrificed and Warlock's could regain their hold over the planet..._

Valkyrie shuddered, they needed bones, blood of innocents and Necromancer powers to destroy the whole human race and of whole Sorcerers.

China had read what Valkyrie had too and understood what they were doing.

Valkyrie turned to China desperately, not considering her feelings. "You must know where they are! Your father was a Warlock! You have to know! People would get killed and the anonymity of Sorcerers is under threat."

China's jaw locked at the mention of her father but she nodded her head anyway.

"They must be where the last fight happened, where they were first trying the Apocalypse."

"The first time?" Valkyrie frowned, "Why didn't you mention they already tried to do this? We should've known from the beginning!"

"I wasn't sure, but now that we are, I think, we can stop them."

Valkyrie bit her lip. "How are we sure that they want Skulduggery's bones? He isn't a King."

"Before he died, at the first War he was the leader of the army. I suppose that could count as a king, and besides, they want revenge from him too."

They both looked at each other for a while, dreading what was going to happen. China started walking to the door, "I'll tell the others, you can start to the Van already."

Valkyrie nodded, still clutching the book as she and China exited the secret library and split up when China went to her apartment and Valkyrie made her way to the staircase.

Valkyrie ran down the stairs quickly, her breath going. She didn't know where they were going, but she hoped they weren't too late.

Mr Bliss was fuming in the room as she came in, China looked aorund the room, trying to find Theodore. "Where is he?"

"He's gone! He's ruddy vanished!"

China's face went white. Valkyrie was gone, by herself. China had let her go when Theodore was missing. "Great, because Valkyrie has gone outside."

"Why isn't she with you, China? Why did you let her go?"

"I thought she was safe, Theodore was in your hand!"

Mr Bliss went out of the 'Interview Room' and met Tanith and Ghastly sitting down. They stood up as Bliss and China approached.

"Where's Valkyrie?"

"In the Van." China answered hesitantly. Mr Bliss turned to his sister angrily.

"Hopefully,"

"What's wrong?" Ghastly asked.

"Theo is out there."

Mr Bliss ran out of the apartment, passed the library and shot down the stairs. He opened the door to the outside alleyway and saw a Black Van screech away, smoking behind it, speeding far away form him.

He stomped the floor, and went to the Van to see if Valkyrie had made it to it, but she wasn't. She was in that Black Van.

He approached back to the door where he found the skin bounded book flown to the floor. He held it in his hands and remembered whose book it had first belonged to. His father. He threw it back down, filled with bad memories and found China, Tanith and Ghastly running down to meet him.

They saw the absence of Valkyrie. China nodded her head in understanding. "The Centre."

"The Centre."


	15. Chapter 15

_**Chapter Fifteen.**_

_**Cell Company**_.

"Great, just great!" Whined Detective Spite. "Just when I thought I had them at my palm, you, Skulduggery Pleasant had to go and act hero!"

Skulduggery would, at that moment have punched Spite across his annoying, little face if shackles weren't tying his hands back.

"Now, now Spite, how would Skulduggery had known that you knew who Elsa Wild and Theodore were in the first place?" Rowan Envy tried to keep the peace.

"Well, I thought he was in on the act too when he was investigating with them." Spite admitted. "But it isn't my fault we're in this position!"

Skulduggery laughed, "So sorry to disappoint you but I am the good guy." he was quiet, then he wandered. "Why did you ever suspect me of being a Warlock?" Skulduggery sounded offended.

"It was New York Sanctuary business, I couldn't tell anyone, else it would have blown my cover. But I didn't trust you. You're fishy, no offence."

"Non taken." Skulduggery lied.

"So," Piped up Envy. "You knew that Riddle wasn't dead from the very beginning?"

Spite hesitated until he said, "Not actually. But I knew Elsa and Theodore were up to something."

Skulduggery sniggered, "Beat you there Detective."

They sat there for a few minutes. Skulduggery leaned against the slimy, wet bricks with his hat low down across the hollow of his eyes. He was deep in thought.

His first thought was of Valkyrie. How was she? Was she safe at home, tired after her hard day at school? Nope, he was probably wrong. Knowing Valkyrie and her luck she would have been in trouble. Then he remembered her phoning him at the moment he and Ghastly were chased by the huge Serpent in Riddle's Manor.

He kicked himself. If only he had at least answered it and heard a bit of what was going on. Maybe she would have alerted the Sanctuary sooner?

He hoped she was well and wasn't stuck in the same position he was in. Did she know where he was? Certainly she would inform China or anyone about what was going on? Then he remembered something Elsa had said. What Elsa, the traitor, had advise him.

"_Detective, she is still a child, a child who should be in school…"_

"No!" Skulduggery bellowed. Both Envy and Spite jumped at his sudden yelp.

"What's the matter?" Envy's face was growing a deeper shade of red since he was chained to the cell.

"Valkyrie. She's in trouble. I just know it!"

Spite scorned, "Oh, so you're a psychic as well as an freak, are you?"

Skulduggery ignored him and attempted to get out of the shackle spell.

"Detective Pleasant, I think you're overreacting here." he said calmly. "Why do you think Valkyrie's in danger?"

"I don't think. I know!" Skulduggery looked around, trying to find something which would break the charm chain.

Spite sat there, uselessly.

"That girl? Why are you fussing about her? She's hardly Warlock priority."

"Shut your mouth just for a minute will you." Skulduggery snapped threateningly.

"Skulduggery, maybe you're underestimating her. She seems like an intelligent and strong girl."

Skulduggery paused, did he trust her? Well, he just didn't want anything to happen to her. He knew Elsa and Theodore had led her into a trap.

Spite rolled his eyes and laid back on the hard and uneven floor of the cell. He turned his back to them.

"Well I'm going to sleep, there's no way Detective Pleasant will ever get out of here."

Just then, footsteps echoed down to the cell from the corridor.

Elsa Wild came into view from the other side of the bars. She was dressed differently, she wore a ceremonial gown of some sorts.

Her hair was spiked up and newly dyed in a bright, shocking red for the occasion and her face was plastered in dark make up.

She placed her small, heart shaped face between the bars and looked at the prisoners. Skulduggery stood up high and unthreatened.

"Almost time, guys. I promise you, you won't have to wait any longer." She announced brightly.

Spite turned over and frowned, "And we're suppose to believe you?" He exclaimed.

Elsa grinned coldly. "Lets just say that you are going to see a start of a new beginning. I and certainly Major Riddle wouldn't want you to miss that. Plus, we need Skulduggery, of course."

Skulduggery didn't like the sound of this. "What do you mean? Why do you require me?"

But Spite spoke before Elsa could.

"What ever you're planning to do would be stopped before you can say 'Good Morning' to you're ruddy new age!"

"Ouch, Fighting talk. I like that. But sadly, that doesn't mean I won't kill you."

Spite's cocky face turned upside down.

Skulduggery stood up and marched to the bars, the chain restraining him from stretching his arm out of the bars, but his face was inches from Elsa's.

"What are you planning? And why do you need me?!" He tried again with something far darker in his voice now, something cold and slightly unnerving for the hero.

Elsa smiled enigmatically. "You will soon find out for yourself, Detective."

And with that she waltzed away, leaving the three detectives nervous.

"What on Earth was that all about?" Spite flustered. "She is going to kill us, right?"

Skulduggery ignore him and turned to Envy, "I think we need to come up with a plan, don't you?"

Envy nodded.

"Oh, Yippee. The Great Escape." Cried Spite unconvincingly.

Ten minutes had gone pass, and Skulduggery, Envy and Spite had talked it through numerous of times.

"You know your role, Spite?" Skulduggery asked.

Spite rolled his eyes, "Of course. I have been in this business for a few hundred years."

"Fair enough." Answer Skulduggery. He addressed them. "I think we're ready."

Suddenly they heard a slam of a door and voices of the Warlock officers. Chains

rattled and heavy footsteps thumped.

Two, rather threatening, burly Warlocks wearing leather jackets appeared.

"'Awight Gentleman, let the Apocalypse begin!" And one of the officers bowed before them.

The other one laughed, "Time for us to take control!"

They opened the locks and the three stood still, waiting for the right moment.

Two of the officers undid the chains to Envy and Spite and cuffed them as Skulduggery waited patiently. Posed.

"Haha, don't pull off any funny business!" The Warlock warned Skulduggery as he approached him.

Skulduggery was turned around aggressively and was held in position.

Suddenly, when the officers were making a transition of shackles to cuffs, he yelled. "NOW!"

Spite thrashed a blow to the second officer's shoulder, and he collapsed immediately. The one holding Skulduggery was caught with a kick to the chin. He was thrown backwards but before the three could escape, his eyes glowed red.

A flash of red came from his eyes and smashed the three into the wall, crumbling at the bottom.

The officer stood up and whammed a button on his wrist watch. Suddenly a alarm sounded. Skulduggery was conscious enough to knock the officer back with the air and continuously cast fireballs to him. But it was no use. As soon as he had sounded the alarm. More officers, including Theodore came who appeared out of nowhere and he was at Skulduggery side as soon as Skulduggery was dragged to his feet.

"Time for your punishment." Theodore declared.

Skulduggery glared at him. "You've got her, haven't you?"

"Who?" His eyes were bright and playful. He knew who Skulduggery meant.

"Valkyrie."

Theodore lied, "Yes."

"What have you done to her?"

"Nothing...yet. But if you help us, she would _maybe_ get away with her life. Deal?"

Skulduggery looked square in Theodore's face, "Deal," he sighed.

_Wait until you know who really has Valkyrie…_

_Hope you're liking them. _

_Rhos Furey_


	16. Chapter 16

_Chapter Sixteen._

_Turn for the Worse._

**"Lorcan?!" **

**Valkyrie had just ran out of the door to the alleyway where she sudden faced Lorcan Knight. The boy from her school. **

**"Stephanie?!" he exclaimed, in the same tone of shock as Valkyrie.**

**Valkyrie didn't know what to do, she had to find Skulduggery, but what was she going to say to Lorcan? **

**"Why are you here?"**

**Lorcan shrugged, "I got lost. I've been trying to ring you. After you left, I was stuck."**

**"Sorry about that," Valkyrie was jumpy, looking over her shoulder, praying that Ghastly, of all people wouldn't appear behind her. She didn't want to answer questions.**

**"Should I get you back to the main street?"**

**"I **_**have**_** wandered off a bit. Yes please."**

**"No problem," Valkyrie eager for Lorcan to go. **

**"It's good to see you again Valkyrie."**

**Valkyrie stopped dead, her hand on his arm, stopping him too. "What did you just say?"**

**Lorcan shrugged, "Nothing."**

**"Yes, you did, you called me Valkyrie!" She was backing away now, shaking her head. **

**Lorcan stepped towards her, smiling, shaking his head. "No, I didn't,"**

**"You DID!" She punched him in the face, but Lorcan grabbed her arm and squeezed, his face contorting in a snarl, his lips curled. **

**He suddenly look devilish and cruel, his eyes wide. He grabbed the collars of Valkyrie's jacket and threw her against the brick wall, Valkyrie kicking and attempting to produce a flame. The book she had held suddenly gone from her grasp. **

**The next minute a glossy Black van came behind Lorcan and the side door slid opened by Sanguine, who quickly leapt out of the driver's seat, and Lorcan chucked himself and Valkyrie inside. **

**Sanguine jumped back in front of the steering wheel and speeded along. **

**Valkyrie was stunned on the floor of the van, staring up at Lorcan. **

**"So, what is this? You're a Warlock or," She noticed Sanguine driving, looking over his shoulder every now again, "Or you're with the Diablerie?"**

**Lorcan frowned, "The Diablerie. What did you say about Warlocks?"**

**Valkyrie shrugged, "Don't you know? They're trying to destroy us? They're going to rule the whole world, apparently."**

**Lorcan gave Sanguine a knowing look and put his chin in his hand. "Look, I got to do this,"**

**He approached Valkyrie with shackles, she had to struggle. The van had a charm that resisted her taking a spell. But that also restricted Lorcan too. She threw a right hook at him but he was unusually quick and he was behind her like a flash. He grabbed the back of her neck and launched her head first to the side of the vehicle and she bounced off. Sanguine maintained the stability of the course of the van even with the impact. Sanguine smiled at Valkyrie's moan of pain. She remained on the floor of the van until she kicked at Lorcan's shin as he stepped, unsteadily, towards her. He cried in pain and went to grab her hair, but Valkyrie was quick too. She turned, grab his wrist and twisted. **

**He knelt down on to his knees and slapped her with the back of his hand. As she cried once more he quickly got hold of both of her hands and latched on the shackles. He tied up her kicking legs and knelt her against the side. **

**"So, the Warlock's are back, are they?" He knelt over her, his arms caging her. His face kneeling in. **

**She nodded, suddenly scared by Lorcan's looks. He was clearly not fourteen like he had said before. Due to his strength and built, Valkyrie could plainly see he was at least eighteen. **

**"You don't have anything to do with this? Your not allied?" Valkyrie raised her eyebrow. **

**Lorcan ignored her and turned to Sanguine. "Phone the head NOW! We have another problem. Well, go on!" He ordered. **

**Sanguine was clearly annoyed by Lorcan's command. "Look, I've been in his business longer than you have, and I think you should show me some more respect, child!"**

**"It seems to me, cowboy, that the head has addressed me to finish off your unfinished business. And if its true that you've been in this 'business' longer than me than I suspect you to have killed his girl a long time ago!"**

**Valkyrie took the opportunity of their 'tiff' to find a way out. She hoped that the guys were tracking her. But, with foreboding, they would have instead expect the Warlocks to have kidnapped her. Well, they would've been looking at the wrong place. **

**Sanguine reluctantly gave in and started a phone call. **

**Lorcan turned back to Valkyrie. "What exactly are they doing?"**

**Valkyrie kept her mouth shut. Lorcan sighed. **

**"Look, I promise I won't hurt you anymore, but you are really making this difficult for me." He said in his new, soft tone. **

**But Valkyrie didn't fall for it. **

**"Okay, I guess you've made your decision." **

**And with that he raised his hand. **

**"Alright!" Valkyrie stopped him just in time, "They're organizing some sort of Apocalypse. I'm not sure where they're going to start this. But the team said something about the 'Centre?'"**

**"The City Centre. They attempted this before there. But they were stopped. Thousands of Warlock's were killed but only a few Sorcerers. The rest of Warlock's were either imprisoned in secret Asylums around the country. Some where even tortured," Lorcan looked directly into Valkyrie's eyes. "By non other than Skulduggery Pleasant himself."**

**Valkyrie squirmed uncomfortably with that but she tried to mask it and defended him. "Warlock's are bad beings, he had to stop them."**

**"I suppose so, but the Warlock's haven't met their match. They won't destroy our plans." He smiled slyly. "Funny that. Although they want to spread terror around the world, the Diablerie don't want that, even though our plan is to spread terror around the world ourselves too. I guess every villain is out for himself."**

**"So why aren't you joined together?" Valkyrie asked. **

**"We're Sorcerers too, we be killed as well as you."**

**Valkyrie saw the amusing side of it. "Even baddies have their own baddies." She looked around her, guessing her fate. "So, what **_**are **_**you going to do with me?"**

**Lorcan squinted his eyes, "Actually, Valkyrie Cain, I think we can find good use of you."**

**Valkyrie took a deep breath. "I'm going to be forced to help you aren't I?"**

**"Well, you were going to stop them anyway. What's wrong with doing that with us?"**

**Valkyrie narrowed her eyes, making her voice as cold as possible. "Because I'm not like you. I want to protect people." **

**Lorcan merely smiled at her in pity and turned to Sanguine who had finished his phone call. "We're meeting the Head at the Centre."**

**"Oh goodie. I haven't had a good fight in ages," He grinned at his hostage. "Welcome aboard Valkyrie."**

**She gave him her utmost look of disgust and turned her head away from him. **

**What had she got herself into?**

_**I just love this chapter, I just made it up as I'm writing my new ending and I absolutely love how its coming along. I love how Valkyrie has to help the Diablerie stop the Warlocks, as they don't want them to take over. Maybe not for the same reason, the big difference being good and evil. But she's at the position where she HAS to help them. Lorcan is quite threatening and crazed here, which I like. His chapter is darker, but a little comedy with Sanguine's clear embaressment having to have to follow orders by a much younger person than he. And also how the team, Ghastly, Tanith, China, etc, assume its the Warlocks who have got her. How confusing is that?**_

_**Anyway, I hoped you liked it as much as I enjoyed writing it!**_

_**Rhos Furey **_


	17. Chapter 17

_**Chapter Seventeen**_

_**Dead Man Walking**_

Skulduggery found that he, except Theodore guiding him, was alone. He suspected Detective Hugo Spite and Rowan Envy must've been taking away on a different route from behind Skulduggery.

Skulduggery could feel the barrel of a gun sticking into his spine, he could've rolled his eyes if he had any.

"I'm made of a bones, not fleshed. No normal gun can effect me." He told Theodore.

Theodore dug in the gun more into his bones. "Well, this ain't no normal gun, Pleasant. This is made out of Gamma Rays and can pulverise your wasted existence to dust!"

"Oh, how nice," Remarked Skulduggery. "So, you and your 'comrades' are using mortal weapons and equipment. Surely the great, mighty and powerful Warlocks don't think they won't defeat us using their over exaggerated magic?"

Theodore didn't raise up to his bait, "We _do_ have a power that could actually ruin you Skulduggery but I wanted you two to meet first before the end comes, and what else can I threaten you with."

"Ah, so you're saying that as I am so difficult to kill, that makes me your most feared rival?" Skulduggery turned his head back to see Theodore behind him, They continued to walk up the underground slope. "So, you're going to finish me off with a Warlock who think he can actually kill me?"

Theodore nodded, "I think you will be unpleasantly surprised."

"Can't wait,"

"But the Major wants to see you first, he has a…proposition for you."

"Oh yeah?" Skulduggery was interested yet a little concerned at the same time. "What kind of proposition?"

But Theodore kept a poker face and remained silent as he led Skulduggery to a chamber.

The chamber was simple, the walls made of stone and slimy moss covered them. This told Skulduggery they were still underground. There was a simple desk in the middle of the small, damp room. Behind the vast desk sat Major Jerome Riddle. He looked perfectly healthy, except for his extremely pale skin but he smiled non the less up at Skulduggery's entrance. Jerome was not in fact alone however.

Skulduggery could've missed her but she was indeed standing in the shadow of the corner. But her bright red hair didn't give her a full disguise.

Elsa Wild.

Theodore stopped him in front of the desk, where Major Riddle stared from his desk.

This reminded Skulduggery when he was first employed by the Sanctuary and first met the current Grand Mage. Facing the stony faced man who would fire him in a click of a finger if Skulduggery messed up. It was that feeling of nerves. But he knew this time, this was far worse than the probability of losing a job.

"You've been planning this since you were appointed Major." Skulduggery said to Jerome.

He felt Theodore hit the back of his spine and Skulduggery knelt over, in pain.

"You do not speak before the master speaks!" Hissed Theodore.

He pulled back Skulduggery up to face the Major.

Skulduggery saw Jerome stand up and address Theodore. "I will have him. Leave him with me."

"But Master, I.."

"JUST GO!" bellowed Riddle, his hand swiped up and Theodore was thrown back into the corridor and the heavy wooden door slammed back into Theodore's stunned face.

Skulduggery was stood, hands cuffed facing Major Riddle.

"Pleasant."

"Riddle."

They both surveyed each other. Sockets into black eyes, black eyes into sockets.

"So, what is the game? You've got Valkyrie so I have to pay you something back to get her?"

"A Game?" Riddle remarked. "I very much love games, how about a Yes or No game? What is it called? Twenty questions, that's the one."

Skulduggery saw Wild in the corner moving her feet, her face was caught in the dim light and she was smiling madly, her eyes crazed.

"I do not care for a playing games when the world is hanging in my hands."

Skulduggery put on his infamous chilling cold voice.

"Ah, I know a good question!" Jerome didn't seem to have heard Skulduggery Pleasant, "How about, "Were you responsible of killing thousands of Warlocks in one second?"

Skulduggery didn't answer, he was caught.

"Do you have a power that could kill every living thing at your command?" Riddle was loving his theme. "Can you live life without remorse? Do you have a special power no one, not even Warlock can possess in the whole magical world?"

The detective's jaw locked, but he couldn't answer.

"I think it is a very easy answer, Pleasant."

"How do you know?" Skulduggery said quietly.

"A Yes or a No, detective."

Skulduggery took a breathe in before he breathed, "Yes."

Riddle smirked and knelt over the desk, nearing Skulduggery and looked up his eyes at him, "And can you raise every person who have killed back from the dead?"

"I can," Riddle eyed him, "…Yes."

"And I want you to raise back every Warlock you killed back at the last Epoch. Do you get that?"

"I can't." Skulduggery's fists were clenched.

"Oh yes you can, Pleasant. Because I was there when you produced that spell. Giving the chance you, your very self, can destroy the world in a blink of an eye. That was your curse, or a blessing when you were resurrected."

"How do you know all this?"

Jerome's eyes were wide and glossy. He seemed suddenly far away. "Because I was there. I was there when I first saw the Dead Man Walking."

_**Okay, please tell me if that was crap or confusing or whatever coz I could always change it for something better. It's a bit short considering my other chapters, but it's quite late. Thanks for all your kind reviews so far too! I really appreciate them!!**_

_**Please R&R!!**_

_**Rhos Furey**_


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